Melody
by Adverage
Summary: You can sing your heart out but it won't matter unless the person you want to hear you is listening. Yorusoi. AU. Rating subject to change. Chapter 29's up.
1. Concerts and Cold Hearts

_This is a test of my ability so I may delete the story in any fit of low self-esteem or inadequacy I may experience. _

_Meanwhile I will attempt to complete it. _

_The italics in this story will generally represent Soi Fong's memories_

_I own nothing_

* * *

She sat absent mindedly strumming a repeated bittersweet chord on her acoustic guitar which she had painted with two parallel stripes, one black, one yellow running right down the middle. It was an activity she took part in constantly as she was prone to finishing work early and the left over time she would use to practice. Her mind today though ,wasn't on the soft lingering tones of her guitar as the strings vibrated at her touch, but on a previous occurrence, a conversation as it were.

"_Soi please? It's just one night, they need a singer. Inoue's got bronchitis." _

_She had busied herself with paper-sorting upon the black haired girls entrance. She didn't offer an answer._

"_Soi? Soi!? Would you at least respond!"_

_With all the papers in place she had no other distraction from the girls voice which she realized, with an abhorrent glare, was in fact asking this favor of her. So she gave a simple answer._

"_I don't sing Rukia."_

_Rukia gave her a matter of fact look, finding this answer unsuitable. _

"_Byakuya says you can! That you used too. Come 'on I'm desperate here" _

_There was a sudden fiery anger in her stomach and she just barely contained herself from hitting the girl who dare bring about such a subject, the target being Byakuya's little sister was a slight incentive to nonviolent actions. Of course on the outside this flare was unnoticeable. _

"_Byakuya is wrong I don't sing anymore."_

Rukia had left defeated, as was Soi Fong's intention, but the conversation kept replaying in her mind like some skipping disc, that no matter how much she tried wouldn't go foreword. She concluded it was the subject matter. It had been awhile since someone had brought up her singing.

Unable to focus she lay her guitar down on the couch, which was (like the rest of her apartment) perfectly in order, she sighed. Her mind already wandering into less than friendly territory.

She hadn't sang at all since-

Soi wanted to stop there, she yelled at her mind to be quiet. She felt tears bite at her eyes.

In a flutter of activity she bolted to the closet, snatched her favorite jacket (the one with the kanji for two on the back) and a scarf, and was out the door and down the stairs. She found as she exited the building that it had started snowing and a small bit of the precipitation had already accumulated on the dark corners of the Tokyo streets. A single breath seared her lungs with freezing cold air and distracted her from her troubling thoughts as she blew out a visible breath. Twilight had passed long ago and car lights whizzed passed. She tucked her chin into her scarf and thought of a destination. She hadn't decided when she saw the flyer sticking out from a snow bank.

It was as if she had entered a déjà vu, she bent over and pulled her hand from the now warm cocoon of her pocket and stuck her pale fingers into the matching snow to grasp a corner of the damp flyer.

It had a familiar picture on it, of a black cat with golden eyes. Across the top it said in soul wrenching letters, Black Cat performing December 18, 10:00 then an address. Her heart nearly stopped. She checked her watch. 10:05 12/18. Her legs started moving.

She didn't know the address, didn't know the place, didn't know if she could get in. She flew around a corner and almost knocked over a tall man but didn't stop to say she was sorry in her excitement of seeing the street name she was looking for. Her eyes barely caught street numbers until she found a place that was familiar, a club she'd been to before with the address se was seeking. A bouncer stood outside a stairwell leading down. Colors flashed on the landing , the sound of a band playing could barely be heard over traffic.

She ran up and pulled a wallet out of the back pocket of her jeans as she'd always found purses an unnecessary hassle. Fumbling she eventually grabbed a fistful of money and pushed it into the bouncers hands, the confused man dropped quite a bit of it on the sidewalk but she breezed passed him into the club, jumping down the first five stairs onto the landing then nearly falling down the rest.

She managed to regain her balance and looked into a room filled with smoke and excitement and people bouncing up and down to the beat a drummer was laying out. She looked up to the stage and her heart dropped. She had been wrong.

There was no familiar faces there, she looked at the band members. A blonde man void of a shirt in leather pants, his messy blonde hair and odd hat covering his eyes. The drummer was a woman with rugged features whom seemed eerily familiar and the bassist was a man with slicked back brown hair and an odd mystic feel about him. With a sudden lapse of understanding she realized there was no lead singer. The lighting left the middle of the stage in shadows and she felt her body tense, on edge, hoping for too much.

The light came on and time stopped.

The club around her disappeared.

On the stage the woman's hair was longer, her clothes different but her eyes, skin, and smirk where exactly the same. They both saw each other at the same time and she registered the shock in the woman's eyes, the shock she knew must have been mirrored in hers. Moments passed moments that, by the guitarist's odd looks, the woman should have been singing and when she finally raised the microphone to her lips all that was muttered was:

"Soi Fong?"


	2. Pride's words

_I'm really not used to writing long chapters and though the end of this chapter sounds conclusive I'm not ending the story here. Just thought I'd quash any uneasy minds. _

_There is language in this chapter._

_

* * *

_

_She remembered it with an almost painful clearness._

_The outline of an elegant black butterfly on cocoa skin. She traced it with her finger one last time marveling at the contrast her pale hands had with the dark smoothness of Yoruichi's shoulder. _

"_Can I see it now?" _

_Though Yoruichi had been sitting patiently for the last hour or two as Soi had engraved that tattoo into her perfect skin she had suddenly decided she could not wait another minute. _

"_I'm afraid you'll hate it." _

"_I promise I won't hate it unless it sucks." _

_Soi Fong rolled her eyes at her friend's bluntness then reluctantly grabbed a mirror that she had been keeping within reach for just this occasion. After a moments hesitation she placed the mirror in Yoruichi's waiting hand then let the woman position it as was necessary, fearing a look of disgust would cross her face. _

_What she got though was even worse._

_Yoruichi's face went blank. Soi Fong went through possibilities._

"_I'm so sorry, maybe you could change it some how, I hear they can remove tattoos and-"_

"_It's perfect." _

_Soi Fong blinked in relief and suprised._

"_Perfect?"_

_She felt strong arms encircle her, pull her into a joyous thankful hug that took her breath away for a reason she could not pin down and examine. Yoruichi held her close, making Soi Fong first self-conscience then an odd kind of comfortable as she buried her face like a child into Yoruichi's hair, the hair that had been skillfully died violet since ten years old._

"_Thank you, Soi Fong." _

_She'd left the next day._

The song had been over five minutes ago but she was still shaking the heavy memories and the lingering surprise from her skin. Yoruichi was here, in this building, not too long ago she had said her name and she should be happy, but she wasn't. As always her voice had been amazing, something to get lost in, but tonight was not the night to do such childish things as get lost.

Some one grabbed her arm, turned her around. She came face to face with the blonde guitarist.

"Someone wants to see you."

She wanted to see someone.

All she did was scowl, the blonde man sighed adjusting his hat. His broad bare chest was about at her eye level.

As if his first question had never been asked he offered his hand politely, "My name's Kisuke Urahara, I'm the guitarist for Black Cat, would you like to accompany me backstage miss?"

He said it with what she took as mocking politeness and it only added to her disdain, not even she knew why she didn't want to accompany him. It might have been some kind of unnecessary pride or it might have just been stubbornness. Acknowledging the fact that these methods weren't quite going to cut it, he leaned down and half-whispered:

"You might as well at least say hello, if not just to chastise her."

Though she didn't need anymore convincing, she only agreed half-heartedly for pride's sake.

Urahara then refused to accompany her unless she linked arms with her escort. She of course found this annoying and after a few minutes he gave in with what Soi Fong found was a very idiotic knowing smile.

The back room was filled with smoke and shadows that, to her, provided a nostalgic comfort. People who were strangers to one another held each other on worn couches, caught in the excitement, falling falsely in love. Scantily-clad groupies of both genders met her with flirtatious smiles as moans resonated from some unseen places, perhaps ambience played through the speakers.

Soi didn't even offer a sideways glance, she knew her place here, this atmosphere had been home.

Seated in the middle of this was Yoruichi reclining aloofly on a central couch, her head thrown back, throat exposed. Soi thought she saw a smear of red lipstick on the chocolate skin. Handsome mysterious men stood against walls, glancing at her from time to time, the woman were a tad less secretive with their desires as a few surrounded Yoruichi. Almost as if they thought just being near her would provide them with some scrap of her glory. Soi Fong hated them the most and gave a special scowl to each one. The band members where scattered about, the drummer smoking against the side of the couch and the bassist speaking with a shady looking man in a back corner.

She felt like a harem girl, brought before her charge.

Yoruichi looked to them as if sensing her arrival. A full dose of those golden eyes and a smirk that had been in place since they had laid eyes on each other not too long ago. She stood, followed by the hands of groupies, like vines desperate to grasp the sun, they reached until she was too far and they knew it.

Here she truly was a goddess.

The onlookers seemed to fall silent as they faced each other. Maybe they expected a fight or for some twisted erotic play to be carried out but they were disappointed when Yoruichi tilted her head slightly and said,

"Hey little bee."

There were a myriad of responses she could say with a smile, questions she wanted to ask

What are you doing here?

How did you get here?

When did you get back?

How have you been?

I've been practicing!

But before these thoughts could begin to cross her mind, her fist had connected with Yoruichi's jaw.

She was on her back in a grand total of one second, taken down by a follower of the goddess.

The rouge looking drummer sat triumphantly on her chest a cigarette still clamped between her lips. A bit of the ash fell on her captives face and she gritted her teeth against the feeling of her flesh burning.

"Bitch, you hurt Yoruichi and I'll kick yer scrawny ass."

A moment passed as she examined the woman's features. Rough black hair, half-lidded warrior's eyes and well sized breasts. It was-

"Kuukaku?"

The woman's eyes did not widen at the realization of the identity of the person whom she was crushing beneath her, she just gave a lopsided grin and said, "Well you've grown up haven't you?"

Yoruichi's voice was heard, "Get off her Shiba."

Kuukaku muttered something along the lines of, "What if I don't wanna?" but obeyed despite it.

Someone offered a hand of assistance but she stood on her own accord. Yoruichi was smirking through a bloody lip.

"A simple hello would've sufficed."

The entire room watched on edge, ready to pounce if she dared to attack their goddess again.

Soi Fong matched Yoruichi's confidence despite her lack of followers.

"Why'd you come back? I thought they'd like you in hell?"

Contempt in every sense of the word slathered her expressions leaving a distinct air of hate about the room.Yoruichi's gold eyes skimmed the crowd as a warning to hold their ground then responded, her demeanor as playful as ever.

"Stressed out or just happy to see me?"

Those gold eyes were burning her from the inside out. Digging up memories and feelings long buried in her mind and music.Her patience for witty banter went out the window.

"Shut the fuck up! Go back to whatever goddam place was so fantastic that you deserted me for it!"

She left them speechless and staring as she turned to leave. Urahara grabbed her wrist but ceased the endeavor as she glared a hole in his arm. She began walking back home, void of feeling and thought, trying to numb herself with the cold of the air, wishing she could be playing her guitar. Over and over she told herself she was victorious, that after all that time she'd finally told Yoruichi what she felt, the burning writhing hatred at the pit of her stomach. For some reason though she was not sated with just that.

A horrible unsuccessful denial of her need for more closure.

She wouldn't admit it to herself until she was outside her apartment building, hot tears rolling down her numb cheeks, hidden by cold, dark and passing traffic. There was nothing mystic about this place. She whispered to the night that which she couldn't say to Yoruichi, couldn't yet say to herself.

"Why didn't you take me with you?"

She fell into a snow bank and let the false warmth of the cold hold her there in her frozen tears.


	3. Coffee

She woke up to the sound of humming. For some reason it seemed out of place because as far as she knew she wasn't sleeping so waking up to anything seemed absurd. Moving a limb or two she came to the realization that she was in her bed which was very comfortable and she, for a second, believed that she had dreamt up the previous nights events until someone said:

"Her body was found frozen outside of her apartment building."

She tried to place the voice but failed miserably and quickly took note that while the voice was talking the humming had continued bringing the number of people around her up to at least two. Opening her eyes they were on soon shut on painful refelx against the sun, which was apparently up and streaming through her bedside window, "That would've been a bad way to die."

She opened her eyes again and managed to keep them that way long enough to see a pale boy with rectangular glasses and black hair. Someone responded to him and she believed it to be Rukia, "Yeah imagine all those Soul Slayer fans, there would've been a riot." She felt like she was eating cotton as she sat up, her sheets falling off of her as she did so.When she surveyed the room, which was her bedroom, she found the pale boy staring back at her, holding a wet towel and Rukia looking like she wanted to run, with good reason.

"First I will thank you for taking care of me."

Soi Fong spoke clearly with a foreshadowing of imminent danger, closing her eyes as she did so, "Second I would like to ask how you've come to enter my apartment?"

As if in response to this question a short orange haired girl came bounding through the door.

"Okay guys now that she's sleeping we should probably-"

Her sentence trailed into abyss at the sight of Soi Fong sitting up and very much awake. She should've known the reason behind this the second she had woken up, "Hello Kiyone." Having given Kiyone a key to her apartment in a lapse of stupidity one summer on the pretenses of a trip to China, Soi Fong had not yet had it returned to her. This was a foreseeable outcome. Kiyone's eyes grew wide with what Soi Fong suspected was fear and she stood with a stoic face. As if Kiyone could not have been in more trouble she gave a half-hearted smile and said, "Um, so Soi Fong, I heard Yoruichi was back in town, can I expect a Soul Slayer reunion concert?"

Rukia spoke up, "Kiyone, you should probably go."

She managed to get out right before a roundhouse kick put a hole in the wall where her head would have been. Her wrath temporarily subsiding she turned to the boy with the glasses who seemed to be wearing a school uniform or something equally proper. "And you are?"

The boy bowed, which took Soi Fong by surprise and the respect and politeness further quelled her anger at the invasion of her home. "My name is Ishida Uryu," He once again stood erect pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he did so. Apparently Rukia had decided since no kicks or scowls had been directed at her yet it would be safest if she talked.

"He's a friend of Ichigo, remember? The last guitarist for Hollow?"

Ishida raised his left hand showing that it was bandaged and the wrist was set in a cast

"I suffered a hand injury during an archery competition. I apologize for the intrusion, Kuchiki-san and myself found you outside your apartment in the middle of the night on our way back from a performance and she got Kotetsu-san to let us in."

As she now had herself under control she offered no sympathy for the boys injury or anything otherwise as impressed as she was by his politeness being a youth of this day and age, instead she just looked at his choice of clothing and said, "Are you a high school student?" He responded with a curt nod. A knock was heard from outside her room and Rukia went to answer as if she had been expecting someone and Soi seriously hoped she had not been short sighted enough to throw a party or something of the sort. Instead of a large group of teenagers though a tall regal looking man in a work shirt found his way through the door of her room. His cold eyes were empty, his elegant demeanor befitting a prince.

"Byakuya." Was all she said in greeting.

The man looked at his sister who then beckoned to Ishida and both left the room, Soi couldn't shake the feeling that she was about to be reprimanded. Byakuya closed his eyes and lowered his head, either in thought or annoyance.

"I was told of your improper conduct last night and realized I owed you an apology."

Soi Fong frowned all the while, she felt a slight stir of anger, thinking that Byakuya always seemed to be annoyingly involved in everything.

"I knew of Yoruichi's return but didn't feel obliged to inform you. Perhaps if I had, last nights event could have been avoided."

His voice was monotone, not conveying any signs of remorse but Soi wasn't about to go asking for what she knew she could not receive, nonetheless she was angry at his lack of thought in not telling her.

"I accept your apology," she said flatly as she began to maneuver past him,. Everything between them is painstakingly proper and formal as if they hadn't been friends before, as if they haven't been colleagues, all-business. Part of her wants to turn and scream at him until he flinched just to prove he wasn't some odd doll. He turned his head as she passed then said

"She requested that you see her."

Her thought process had returned from its disappearance last night and she knew it was impossible to avoid an eventual confrontation. Might as well get it over with.

"Where would she like to meet?"

* * *

Of all the possible meeting places, for all the possible situations, Starbucks was the worst choice by far. 

So, of course, that's what Yoruichi had chosen.

Soi Fong walked through the designated door at the designated time, her scarf wrapped around her neck and jacket on, along with a pair of jeans a bit tight for her liking but the only clean pair as somehow she had uncharacteristically forgotten to do her laundry. The over powering smell of cinnamon, foam and other vile condiments choked her on contact and made her eyes water. She didn't need to look far to find Yoruichi, first because her hair was unique in any setting and second because she was Yoruichi. She was leaning back in a chair wearing a black turtle neck and sipping casually on some concoction that Soi was sure would make her gag. As if to add to her current bad mood. when she spotted Soi, she made a spectacle of beckoning her over, waving her arms over her head unnecessarily as if to tease her for actually coming into this establishment that they both knew she simply hated.

It was as if she had never deserted her.

Soi only resisted the urge to leave by the knowledge that Yoruichi would probably follow her home.Sitting down at the small table she did her best to contain her glare. Yoruichi was grinning as if surprised she'd actually shown up.

"Wanna sip?" She indicated the white foam cup she held.

"I don't drink shit."

Yoruichi gave a low whistle, "Wow, someone's mad, it's just milk and if you insult that I don't know if I can continue this politely."

Yoruichi put the cup down on the table delighting in the confused scowl that graced Soi's lips. Tension was already pounding in her ears, Yoruichi's smile already gnawing on her nerves and those eyes already ahd her enticed in a flase beauty. She wouldn't pretend Yoruichi had never left, she'd hold that close forever as a sign of her strength. Yoruichi had been the one to runaway, but was the opposite much better?

"Plus you know we both hate the coffee here."

She cocked an eyebrow at this new development.

"So tell me why we met here of all places?"

The goddess's answer was simple and she said it simple but, like most things she said, it confused the hell out of her.

"Because we both hate the coffee here."

Her patience had already run out and she feared a repetition of the previous nights events, she still saw a slight bruise on Yoruichi's jaw. Pushing out her chair she stood up briskly, deducing that the woman had nothing of worth to say and she had no reason to listen. As she turned though she was stopped.

"I missed you Soi."

She looked back slowly, thinking of things to say, but found she was left speechless by Yoruichi's sudden softness and the apology in her eyes. As quick as it had been there the look was gone and replaced by the same all business texture that infected Byakuya's body language. Soi got the message and resumed her seat, knowing now that something serious was about to be discussed.Yoruichi grinned ruining the mood and almost making Soi Fong sigh at her lost hope of Yoruichi taking this seriously, "So I'm gonna take a wild guess that you want revenge and something tells me socking me in the face in front of a crowd isn't cutting it for you." Here she paused to run a slender finger across the bruised skin that stained her jaw.

"Byakuya's told me your not too bad with a guitar-"

Soi Fong cut in, the gears in her head already biting into Yoruichi's thought process.

"So I was wondering if you'd perhaps maybe want to give me a hand."

It wasn't a question or an answer so Soi just sat back waiting for further explanation and already thinking up ways to refuse.

"I'm in need of a guitarist."

She wondered if Yoruichi was lying badly, maybe she thought Urahara hadn't blatantly announced his identity to her, maybe it was a trap. Whatever the case she just looked patiently at Yoruichi expecting more.

"You met Urahara I believe and he's good don't get me wrong, he's busy a lot though, and he's much better on bass."

Yoruichi seemed to utterly disregard the current bassist, whose name was the only one she had not yet learned. "And the current bassist?" She said feeling the urge to address the issue. "Aizen? I don't like him." She offered no further details confirming Soi's suspicion that something was awry. She had listened quietly to Yoruichi's proposition and not only thought it was completely sudden, ridiculous, arrogant, and convenient but was disinclined to it more so than any scheme of Yoruichi's that she'd ever been against.

She stood with a definite finality and asked a question that she wanted answered before her refusal.

"And how will this help me get revenge?"

Yoruichi looked up at her with all the cockiness in the world.

"I'm asking you to be the next goddess of Flash."

Soi sneered, her thoughts focused on never replacing Yoruichi for anything else ever again, then she turned on a heel and began her departure, Yoruichi did nothing to stop her, just swigged down the last of her milk with a mutter of.

"So when will you say yes?"

Soi turned back and contained herself from yelling, though she still spoke with a venomous bite just as bad as any.

"When you get on your knees and beg."


	4. Assault without stars

_Wow, I haven't given up yet. Thanks for all the reviews, they keep me going. _

* * *

Twilight lay silently over Tokyo, doing nothing to eliminate the constant flicker of streetlights and soft glowing from assorted windows set in steel and glass giants. No stars visible and the restless energy of night waited, hibernating in the snow drifts, for anyone brave or naive enough to rouse it from its sleep. She couldn't think why the thought of groceries had occurred to her this late but it had and her unfounded nervous energy sent her out of the house. Soi waked with a bag in each hand, neither was heavy but her arms seemed to be. Taking a breath into her scarf to keep her lips from going into permafrost she calculated there was about six blocks left to her home.

People walked passed and not they nor her paid much attention to one another, playing the roles of strangers. She played it perfectly. Then she saw a flash of silver in tinted glass, the image made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Passing another window she took a look. A tall silver haired man seemed to be following her. Fearful adrenaline tightened her throat though there was little for her to worry about, she was a fifth degree black belt trained in China and if he was a mugger he'd picked the wrong girl. Or so she thought until something hard and presumably metal pressed into the hollow of her back a voice like ice in her ear.

"Scream and I'll shoot."

Thoughts ran through her mind at a mile a minute as she gritted her teeth, if that was a real gun there was no current way to dispatch him. Consenting with a nod she heard her heart beat in her ears, the cold was forgotten. He maneuvered her into an alley and he plotted his destruction all the way.

"Turn around."

Doing as directed she came face to face with a grinning narrow-eyed silver haired felon. His face was sharp and had a slippery feel about it, he felt familiar though she didn't know where they could have met.

"Hiya."

He was sinister nature was subtle, like a criminal without enough evidence for a warrant. Except the pistol he held was, to her, enough evidence to condemn the bastard. Her heart was pounding and she felt her eyes widen as he drew slightly closer, he smelled like cologne

"Do you have anything for-"

There was a sudden loud thunk as if wood had hit something hollow. The man let loose a pained yell and dropped into a reflexive fetal position, his hands holding his head. Standing where the mugger had been, without his hair not slicked back and his eyes framed in thick spectacles was the bassist for Black Cat.

"Come on!"

He gestured her to follow, leading her out of the alleyway, he didn't need to be told twice and departed but not before placing a vengeful kick to her attackers ribs.

"Are you okay?"

She was still buzzing with adrenaline and slightly out of breath from the two blocks they had just sprinted but she nodded. He caught his breath and smiled.

"Good, you should watch out when you're alone at night."

Soi Fong gave him a half bemused look, "I'm a black belt."

He didn't seemed fazed by this not quite contradiction to his suggestion.

"I'm Aizen Sousuke."

He bowed then offered a large hand to shake, Soi Fong took it trying at a hard grip but probably failing.

"Soi Fong, thank you for the assistance."

"Not a problem."

She nodded and began in the direction of home feeling no further thanks were necessary.

"Um pardon me?"

She looked back wondering if she'd have to be assaulted twice in the same night, after all, Yoruichi seemed to have a certain opposition to him.

"I can't help but feel as I've seen you before?"

She nearly fell over. To help an acquaintance was one thing but this man must be a certain level of chivalrous if he was going to rescue a complete stranger.

"I'm the girl who punch Yoruichi."

An odd look crossed his face, she couldn't tell whether it was surprise or realization or some mixture of the two but he smiled after his thoughts had completed themselves.

"Oh right! How could I have forgotten?"

Glancing sideways she muttered less than enthusiastically, "Who knows?," though he didn't seem to hear. She thought she was making it rather obvious that she didn't exactly feel like continuing a conversation, unfortunately he didn't get the hint as he decided to walk next to her.

"So what is your relationship with Miss. Shihouin?"

They both walked at the same pace and though she wanted to avoid the confrontation she figured politeness would be best considering he had saved her from a very sad fate.

"We're old friends."

He paused looking at the groceries.

"Let me take those for you."

After a second of thinking up an excuse and nearly asking if this guy was looking for a date she eventually felt the ache in her shoulder and relinquished the bags, he held both in one big hand.

"Old friends? Kisuke informed me you used to be band mates."

Soi responded rotating he shoulder and feeling the crack of joints in the tensed limb. They began walking again. "That's true but it'd all in the past now."

Aizen nodded, "I know the feeling," he muttered softly then looked up at the barely visible stars, over powered by the streets lights that were more real here on the surface of the Earth. His eyes were forlorn hinting at some deep personality and he repeated the phrase with more stability, "I know the feeling. So are you a college student."

She nearly groaned at the remembrance that final day of her winter break would be next week. "Yes, Tokyo University, I'm a junior."

His eyes grew slightly wide, "A junior? You'd have to be at least twenty wouldn't you?"

This was common when she told people of her grade considering her youthful, or some would even say, age ambiguous appearance.

"Actually I'm twenty-one," she stated flatly, happy to find they had reached the threshold of her apartment building. Aizen handed her the groceries.

"Funny I thought you were a seventeen year-old runaway."

He smiled down at her but didn't offer to walk her up to her apartment which she silently thanked the god's for.

"Well thank you Aizen."

"Call me Sousuke next time."

'Assuming there's a next time,' she grumbled to herself. He walked away with a smile and she started her journey to the fourth floor.

* * *

When she found the door unlocked it was only slightly distressing, Kiyone could've come by or maybe one of her other friends who knew where she kept her spare key. Pushing the door open with her back she backpedaled a step to far and bumped into something soft. Arms wrapped around her from behind.

"Ha-low Soi-chan."

Yoruichi pronounced each syllable with unnecessary stress and Soi dropped her groceries. Pulling away quickly she whirled around and not-quite-yelled, "What the hell are you doing?! How did you get in?!"

Yoruichi stood there with her arms crossed over her chest, a silver key dangling from one of her fingers. "Still keep your spare in the air vent at the end of the hall, eh? Wasn't that my hiding place for it?"

Soi cursed her own stupidity as well as Yoruichi's memory. Meanwhile the latter had picked up the victimized groceries and brought them over to the counter.

"I've been staying at Kisuke's."

Soi Fong felt a foreign tenseness enter her muscles at this information. Yoruichi began packing the groceries examining each as she did so and making a few disgusted faces at a few items.

"Unfortunately he's throwing a party.:

Soi walked over and snatched a pack of butter that Yoruichi was currently poking at.

"What's wrong with that? You love parties."

Though she was trying with every fiber of her being to well up some shred of anger it was for some reason impossible. Being mad at Yoruichi was not on her mind's current agenda. She scowled at this fact as she finished unpacking her food.

"Not every night, I need sleep!"

Taking a few steps she collapsed dramatically onto the couch. Soi completed putting away her groceries as quickly as possible ready to take another crack at arguing but when she walked over to do so she found Yoruichi snoring softly against a pillow. Hopeless.

At this point she knew she could've dropped a refrigerator on Yoruichi and the woman wouldn't have stirred. Soi Fong shook her slightly.

"Yoruichi!"

She was defeated before she began and left her be. Standing over her hands on her hips she said, " Okay, but it's only for tonight." As she turned around Yoruichi muttered, "Sure."

When she spun back around there was no sign that Yoruichi had spoken, or that her words hadn't just been a gust of wind against the window sill.


	5. Plum fragerence

_Apologies on update times I've been self/pre/over-occupied_

* * *

Somewhere far from where Soi and Yoruichi had agreed on a temporary cease fire a silver-haired man picked himself off the ground. A shadow walked passed him and had he not know the outline so well he would've been nervous. Blood covered his chin, he'd spit some up when the girl had kicked him, and he had a bump on his head. He got to his feet and rubbed his tender skull. He spoke to the shadow, "Was 'at necessary?" The shadow stayed silent, a reassuring silent. "I apologize Gin, I thought it would be more convincing if it was done that way." Gin didn't argue but he wasn't looking too pleased. "Just try'n warn me next time 'ur gonna smack me in the back o' the head with a wooden board, okay Aizen?"

* * *

It was three o'clock in the morning and Soi was still lying awake staring at the ceiling. The sound of Yoruichi's breathing wafted in from the other room. I made her feel oddly displaced, like lately she wasn't really alive. As shadows danced on the walls she was carried away by heavy memories and light snoring.

"_Please Soi-chan?" Yoruichi was pouting with all her might, eyes watering with false tears. "It's just one night." Soi Fong's eyes were wide as she wasn't one to reject Yoruichi, though this request made her uneasy . "Yoruichi-sama you live in a penthouse. Why do you want to spend the night here?"_

_Back when she had been a sixteen year-old runaway coaxed away from home by the cliché of forced marriage, devoted to work and studying every day, back then she'd only known Yoruichi for a few months. She was still learning how to deal with her personality which was in as much contrast as their appearances. "I don't wanna, **they'll** call all night trying to trick me."_

_The woman emphasized such contempt on the word 'they'll' that she couldn't help but ask._

"_Who'll trick you out of what?"_

_They were standing passed the doorway, the apartment a fair deal emptier then in the past. _

"_My parents old associates trying to weasel their money out outta me." _

_You could see her eyes narrowing dangerously, Soi sighed, "Okay then."_

_Not to long after, Yoruichi was settled on the couch and they said their goodnights. Soi had lay awake then, listening to the soft breathing radiating from the next room. She stayed like that until she heard a creak and a few seconds later a rustling followed by the feel of the covers being pulled back, she turned to look._

"_Yoru-!!!!"_

_Her exclamation was stopped as the woman pressed a slender finger to her lips._

"_Shhhh."_

_She obeyed and relaxed, still sitting upright, wondering what was going on . It's not as if Yoruichi was naked or anything of the sort so her fears where unfounded and the woman removed her finger then found her way fluidly under the covers. Yoruichi slept facing away from her, but she stayed up until midnight, staring at the back of her outlandishly covered head, trying to figure out what the hell she was thinking._

Soi woke up to the smell of food. In her home this was rare since she rarely had time to awaken and actually prepare a decent meal, a matter which her friends blamed her incredibly small size on. She usually found herself munching on a muffin on her way into work. She slithered half-conscious out of bed and into the kitchen, shivering as her sock-free feet touched cold tile, a real breakfast was laid out for her.

Not knowing where half the ingredients came from and it was made even more torturous by the knowledge that it was probably Yoruichi's cooking, and therefore deemed inedible.

"Good your up!"

Yoruichi was smiling proudly her hands on her hips and hair cascading over her shoulders, following this line Soi Fong realized that her unwanted house guest was wearing only a black bra which, to even her own surprise, she find a problem Taking her focus away from the scantily-clad woman she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and took a step forward to examine the food. It didn't look like it would explode on contact, which was within itself an accomplishment for Yoruichi. "Is this stuff edible?"

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

Yoruichi pouted indignantly, her brow furrowed in mock annoyance, it became obvious that she hadn't actually prepared the meal when a silver haired girl walked from the door to the bathroom wringing her fingers in a hand towel. She paused, her eyes glazed over like a deer in the headlights.

"Uh h-hi Soi Fong."

Yoruichi gave a sheepish grin and Soi shot her an 'I though so' look.

"Hey Insane."

The woman sighed relieved she wasn't in trouble, though that shouldn't have been a worry initially, then went back to drying her hands.

"I came to pick you up for work and-"

Her voice was so timid and quiet that Yoruichi must have thought it was necessary to explain it in a way Soi Fong could actually understand or at least hear.

"I asked her to make breakfast."

Soi cursed loudly not even needing to look at the clock to realize the inevitable error.

"Damn, work."

Soi Fong was not one to apologize, so when she strolled through the door into the "11th district" music store she offered neither explanation nor condolence to the skin head manager.

On the other hand Isane announced they're arrival with several stuttered "I'm sorry"s along with multiple bows. The manager didn't seem to give a damn either way and puffed out a small smoke ring after inhaling lung poison from a cigarette. "Just get to work." "Y-yes, Ikkaku." Soi Fong eyed the cigarette suspiciously, "Didn't Kenpachi say no more smoking inside since you set off the fire alarms?" Ikkaku looked up at her boredly lounging in the corner where the cashiers counter met the wall, "Didn't Yachiru tell you not to be late anymore?" They reached a silent agreement in a stare down. "Eh, just shut the hell up and start working will ya? It's Christmas time so you can't just sit on your ass all day." Soi Fong turned heading for the back through the many rows of cd's and wall mounted guitars muttering, "Practice what you preach bastard."

She opened the door to the back just in time to run into a small girl carrying a large pile of cd cases, she managed to catch the girl but the cases clattered to the ground.

The girl knelt down an immediately began picking them up, an action which Soi copied.

"Sorry, I couldn't see." The girl must've been new, her black hair was tied in a bun and she looked like she didn't belong in an indie music shop, though Soi couldn't say she did either.

"No, my bad."

They managed to gather all the dropped items and Soi carried half to the designated table.

"Sorry again, and thanks for helping. Um, I'm Momo Hinamori."

Now that she had an undistorted view of the girls face she found she was young, her hair was mussed from the previous incident and she was smiling.

"I'm Soi Fong. You're new?"

Usually Kenpachi didn't hire kids to do his work, he'd hardly hired Soi Fong just because she'd looked like a kid, which made it a mystery why his business partner seemed to be violating a few child labor laws.

Hinamori nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah, actually I just moved to Tokyo with my boyfriend."

The girl followed her into the back room where she passed Renji who was struggling to carry twice his weight in drum equipment. Instead of helping she simply said, "Unless you want Yumichika on your ass for dropping equipment I'd rethink your strategy." He didn't seem to hear over his own grunts of effort.

"So you're here with your boyfriend? "

"Yeah, he came with his band, his name's Sousuke."


	6. Kidnapped

A foreboding distain crawled into Soi's throat and settled stubbornly there, though she had no solid evidence of Aizen doing wrong, the man left a sour taste of unfaithfulness in her mouth.

"Aizen Sousuke?"

Hinamori's eyes lit up with what was neither joy nor fear that perhaps she'd done something wrong.

"Oh you know him?"

Soi Fong nodded, "We've met. I know the singer in his band." Hinamori smiled in response but a nervous twinge pulled unrelentingly at her eyes. "Yoruichi right? She's so cool." The last thing Soi wanted at this time was to have a conversation with one of Yoruichi's fan girls and her prayer for salvation was answered when a bang sounding suspiciously like an explosion resonated from the front of the store. Isane stood bewildered with what looked like soot covering her face and frosting her silver hair making her eyes show in eerily brilliant contrast. Her smile asked for forgiveness but Soi's eyes only responded with annoyance, then a sigh as she walked over to assist her, watching Hinamori slip into the back room.

Isane had managed to drop a box filled with heavy electrical supplies on a pile of defective bow rosin, creating what was equal to a storm of black powder and a box of hopefully undamaged supplies.

Soi dropped down to her knees to gather up misplaced plugs and coils, Isane swept up what she could, accidentally getting a fair amount of it in Soi's face. With a grit of her teeth and a retained impulse to thwack Isane over the head with the broom handle she managed to complete her task. Standing she watched Yumichika flounce through the door jovially, arms weighed down with bags filled with clothes and more than likely some cosmetics. He looked between their faces both covered in black powder as were Soi's jeans, "Well you to look like your having fun." Disgust shone brilliantly on his smooth feminine face and with a wiggle of the hips, he exited stage right. Under her breath Soi muttered, "You look like your having a gay old time yourself."

"Be careful next time Isane."

"Y-yeah, I'll-"

Eyes stared through the glass at them stoic and unfeeling, a woman stood there in the snow clad only in a tee shirt and pajama pants, blood gushing from her nose and lip. The disturbing quality of this macabre image was not lost on Soi as she unwillingly flinched. Isane however only saw someone in need of help and she rushed behind the counter grabbed the first aid kit that only she used and rushed across the store, nearly knocking Soi Fong into a drum set in the process.

Isane sat the girl down on a piano bench and began suturing her wounds with amazing speed and precision, typical of the med student that she was. While she proceeded in this care, Soi Fong decided to question their surprise patient which yielding about as much information as questioning a rather stubborn boulder.

Isane piped up, "Her names Nemu."

Soi Fong cast and incriminating glance at her, "You've met?"

Isane's attention shifted guiltily to the blood on the woman's face, it was all the answer that Soi needed.

"For some reason I think you know how her face got busted. Mind telling me?"

Isane bit her lip contemplatively, looking at Nemu's stoic broken face. However, they were not her cuts and bruises the pain that should have been in Nemu's eyes currently resided in Isane's.

"You can't tell anyone okay?"

Soi Fong neither consented nor disagreed, just waited. Isane apparently took this as a yes.

"It's her dad."

Soi almost rolled her eyes at the soap opera grade over dramatics, "Just get her cleaned up and-"

"Hello, Soi-chan!" A heavy arm threw itself across her shoulders, looking up she found the less than welcomed sight of a grinning Urahara. "I was informed of your misadventures by Aizen-san. I thought you would appreciate a big strong man to act as your personal bodyguard." Soi noted this had no explanation of how he knew where to find her. She raised an eyebrow which succeeding in making him remove his arm and smile sheepishly while he adjusted his hat.

"That's not necessary."

She evil-eyed him, quite a feat considering their large height difference. Urahara faked a shiver mockingly, "Cold in here or is that just me?"

"It's just you."

"Hinamori emerged from the back room just in time to get hawked by Urahara who crossed the distance in what seemed like a single step and gave her a friend hard pat on the back that made a hollow thump and visibly knocked the air out of her, or at least that's what her sputtering indicated.

"Ah, Hinamori-kun it's good to see you again, small world isn't it." He smiled seizing the rim of his cap in a friendly gesture. Hinamori managed to cough out a greeting as Soi caught sight of Isane sneaking behind a display case; Nemu was nowhere to be found.

Despite initiating belief Urahara turned out to be a big help and got buddy-buddy with Renji, Soi sneered when Hinamori used the term, "Male-bonding." Compared to other more grueling days this one passed relatively quickly and as she had managed to avoid the late shift, she left early, much to her disappointment Urahara remained at her side. She turned a corner at Urahara's direction in search of his car, since he had offered to drive so she needn't 'subject herself to the dangerous atmosphere of the train.' On the other side of this corner was Aizen and she managed to ram directly into his chest. Though she managed to keep her balance, she was suddenly dizzied and saw a streak of silver leave her vision.

"Oh, hello Soi Fong."

As he said this, his eyes were on Urahara, who he obviously did not suspect to be there. This expression was quickly replaced with his constant good-natured smile, Urahara put a protective hand on her shoulder, and Aizen's expression seemed to darken. She felt as if she were in the middle of a telekinetic turf war.

"You too Kisuke."

There was a happy yell behind them and Hinamori pushed through them and into the man's waiting arms.

"Hinamori-kun, I was just talking with my friends here."

His arms crossed her shoulders as she turned around to look at the odd pair. "Yeah, Soi works with me so met today. Weird isn't it, we're both dating guys in the same band."

Soi's eyes widened in anger and surprised, luckily the situation was diffused before she could rip a parking meter from the concrete and bash Hinamori over the head for the mere mention of the thought of a relationship with Urahara.

"Your mistaken Hinamori-kun, I was just sent here on an errand by Yoruichi." Urahara had only managed to transfer the meter beating to himself. A loud honk frightens all of them and there eyes are diverted to a good-looking black sports car, a grinning Yoruichi behind the wheel sporting dark sunglasses.

Urahara smiled, "Well we must be going." With a few goodbyes Urahara steered her towards the car and she couldn't help but feel that she was being kidnapped.


	7. Concrete Ice

The car careened out of the parking lot at a speed that (according to the ringing in Soi's ears) broke the sound barrier, not to mention the speed limit. Urahara had buckled up the second hid but had hit the front seat but Soi Fong had been too distracted by being shoved into the back of a seat against her will to be so insightful.

After she gained her composure and wedged herself out of the seat she'd been crushed into by increasing inertia, she scowled. "Where are we going?" Yoruichi wasn't listening as she avoided taking out a bus. Urahara on the other hand was, and responded instead of the distracted driver. "We're going to practice new guitarist-san."

"Pull the car over."

Yoruichi glanced back at her as if begging her to compromise since she was already in a moving car towards what Yoruichi wanted. When the driver didn't do as told Soi Fong pushed open the door of the still moving vehicle. Yoruichi managed to halt beside a curb before Soi Fong managed to exit the car, action movie style.

Leaving the car's air conditioned interior, was met with frigid air, and began stalking off in some unimportant general direction. A car door opened and closed behind her.

"Soi!"

Her pace quickened on the slick sidewalk, it was definitely Yoruichi, but who did she expect it to be? Not like Urahara would've leapt from the car in an attempt to halt her. For a Tokyo street around five it was oddly vacant, or maybe the falling snow just made it appear that way. She kept her eyes on the ground, angry at Yoruichi's arrogance, looking forward for a second she saw an approaching interception.

"Soi! Stop!"

In her mind, it was just an attempt by Yoruichi to keep her from storming off and ruining her perfect little scheme. A warning was the farthest translation of the expression. Her foot hit ice and her legs went out from beneath her. Body hits concrete, tumbling painfully across a few feet in distance, she finally rolled to a stop and looked up in a hurtful dizzy haze. Silver eyes meet oncoming traffic.

Now, there are few things one can do when faced with the business end of a four by four jeep. None of these options were anywhere close Soi's thoughts. Hands tucked overhead she assumed the fetal position, hoping her small size would work to her advantage for once. A horn blared and tires screeched the smell of burning rubber. If she was dead it hadn't changed much, she was still in pain from her fall, still cold, still on the ground. Slowly she unfurled herself and looked up. Standing there, panting, her hands on the cars hood was Yoruichi. Fright lingered in gold eyes, "You okay!?"

The driver leaned terrified from his window. "Yeah." Yoruichi responded, her voice weak, "Just fine."

"I'm just saying, she jumped in front of a car!" A bruised spine, possible concussion, scrapes, and scratches were better than being dead. Kiyone had been in her house upon her return and for lack of a better person to talk to she uncharacteristically decided to share the day's events. Still the constant reminder that Yoruichi had saved her, risked her life, the fact that she had been able to stop it from happening while Soi couldn't was getting annoying.

"I know, okay? I owe her one." "You owe her your life!"

Kiyone didn't seem as worried as she was impressed.

The door busted down or so it sounded and in rushed Isane in her full out doctor mode. One hand felt Soi's forehead while her other checked her pulse, welcome to the ICU. Isane Care Unit.

"I came as soon as my class ended, how many fingers am I holding up?"

Soi tilted her head to the side annoyed, "I don't know Isane, seven?"

Isane got the point and retreated into her shell of timidity. Another woman entered the apartment, radiating enough warmth and care to be mistaken for Mother Theresa.

"Sorry, Soi I was just worried, Kiyone told me what happened. You're lucky to be alive."

Kiyone butted in, "Thanks to Yoruichi-sama of course! Though it might've been cool if you'd broken your arm or something then Yoruichi-sama would've signed it and we could've sold the cast later!"

Soi didn't even bother to scowl at such a ridiculous idea. Motherly woman looked at her.

"Yoruichi Shihouin perhaps?" Isane suddenly jumped as if remembering she'd brought someone with her.

"Eh, s-sorry, this is Retsu Unohana she's my teacher and a doctor at the hospital."

Unohana smiled politely, "I was just speaking with Miss. Shihouin."

Soi contemplated ways to ask about the woman's connection to Yoruichi without looking over zealous.

"You know Yoruichi-sama!?" Thank the gods Kiyone was a fan girl.

Unohana nodded and welcomed herself to the seat beside Kiyone. The nod seemed directed at Soi Fong despite the fact that it was Kiyone's question, as if she had some eerie sense of Soi's curiosity.

"If I remember correctly Miss. Shihouin had sprained both her knees."

Soi's eyes darkened, "Are you sure?" The guilt was already on her, Yoruichi had gotten hurt.

Kiyone looked between the two women and felt left out of the conversation but a glance from her sister silenced any attempts at reentering. "Yes, I was called in to help her; we were short handed today at the hospital. I remember perfectly because she sad a car hit her, she was brought in by a man with a funny hat."

The guilt his her like a tidal wave, though she didn't know exactly why, human nature maybe? The person who had saved her life had gotten hurt at her expense; Yoruichi probably couldn't even walk with both her legs in that condition. She thought back, Yoruichi had decided it would be better if he drove after the incident, they'd dropped her off and Yoruichi hadn't exited the car. Did Urahara take her to the hospital afterwards? Knowing Yoruichi, she probably denied injury until she hadn't been able to stand up. There was prolonged silence as if they all knew exactly what was running through her head. Then in a quiet voice she said, "Isane could I borrow your car keys?" Isane reached into her pocket wordlessly and threw her the key chain.


	8. Exactly what you want

-1Renji answered the door. It shouldn't have been a surprise since they'd been roommates for three months now, nonetheless something about a boy with a waterfall of red hair answering the door when you where expecting a regal ice sculpture was off setting. It was almost seven/

"Is Byakuya here?"

The aforementioned descended the stares in what appeared to be a silk bathrobe and stared at her not in the lease bit surprised. "Yes Soi Fong?"

"Where does Urahara live?"

Byakuya looked at her in a way she suspected was questioningly though it hardly showed through on his stony face. "Take a second left turn going east and it's the third on the right, but Yoruichi isn't there and I doubt you're looking to pay him a late night visit."

Soi waited for an explanation, knowing that Byakuya would tell her.

"She's at Shiba's; Kuukaku-san still lives in the penthouse."

That sentence made her realize how disconnected she'd been from all of her friends lately, and how Yoruichi had pulled her back into the mess of being social.

The Shiba family owned a decent sized hotel ring; Kuukaku had been the heir ever since their parents had gone into a mysterious retirement after Kaien died in that robbery. The Kuchiki family franchise was equally as impressive, though Byakuya hadn't splurged on anything big lately, not like Kuukaku and her brother did near daily. Come to think of it Yoruichi had been rather wealthy as well, which raised the question of why she was staying at other peoples houses. Soi sighed as she focused on the road wondering why most of her friends where rich and didn't hang out at the high society parties like they were supposed too. In fact when she'd first met Yoruichi the woman had managed to sneak out unnoticed, leaving Soi with the bar tab. If it hadn't been for Byakuya they would never have seen each other passed that chance encounter and her life would be incredibly different.

When she finally took an annoyingly long elevator ride to the top of the building (she reminded her self to tell Kuukaku that for a rock drummer she sure did play boring music in the elevators) she was not surprised by the large stone statues in the walk way, two arms holding up the hall way ceiling. She walked between them marveling at the things you could waste money on and knocked on the door.

No one answered, if Byakuya was correct then there should be someone to answer the door, unless of course Kuukaku had been inconsiderate enough to venture out with Yoruichi in such a state. She knocked again louder but before her hand hit the wood for a third sequence of insistent bangs the door was opened.

Kuukaku stood there; pajama's barely covering her chest, obviously drunk.

"Well if it ain't Soi-chan, I'm surprised you still remembered where I live."

A pang of guilt hit her at her lack of ability to keep in touch, it was soon forgotten when Kuukaku grabbed her by the back of her tee-shirt and threw her on the couch. Had it not been for a child hood of martial arts training she would have landed very compromisingly on Yoruichi. Alcohol laced the air, intoxicating her just by the smell.

Yoruichi smiled, happy to see her, a sake bottle held in her right hand as she reclined against the back of the couch. Blurriness embedded in gold eyes, a look she knew well.

Soi whirled angrily on Shiba.

"She's hurt."

Kuukaku gave a hearty drunken laugh, "O'course she is silly."

"You know she isn't very good with alcohol."

"Ain't my fault she'sa lightweight. C'mon have a drink, we're just havin' some fun."

Kuukaku left for the kitchen and her stash of alcoholic beverages, she was left alone with her guilt and Yoruichi. "Ah, you came to say hello?"

Unlike Kuukaku, while drunk, Yoruichi's speech skills almost seemed to improve. Glancing sideways, Soi caught sight of a bottle of painkillers; its meager remaining contents were spilled across the polished oak.

"Hmmm?" Yoruichi hummed taking another gulp of alcohol, Soi took the bottle from her hand and Yoruichi just looked at her, eyes shining with something unknown to Soi. Or something deniable.

"No, I came to apologize, for getting you get hurt."

Yoruichi nodded inconclusively, "Battle scars for saving my Soi-chan."

Soi couldn't help but feel as if Yoruichi was piling on the guilt, as unintentional as it may be.

"I feel as if I owe you one so…"

Soi took a breath, ready to condemn herself to a week of self-induced melancholia for going against her own words. Just this once she was going to give into Yoruichi's wishes.

"You gonna strip?"

Soi's eyes narrowed though she felt refreshed by such Yoruichi-typical thinking. Then Yoruichi smiled and began pushing herself to her feet with a fair amount of difficulty. For a second Soi thought to tell her to stop and push her back on the couch but showing any form of caring would go against the image of herself that she'd built up. Nonetheless the instinct to care for Yoruichi was there, and she cursed it silently, wishing it would crawl back into whatever hole it had been hiding in for the last couple of years.

Yoruichi stood smiling, "Sorry, Soi-chan I can't get on my knees for you but I'm beggin' you to come and join Black Cat, hell we could call ourselves Sparrow Hornet but I need ya', mm'kay." The sentence was a little slurred which was odd for her, but Soi's stomach fluttered anyway, the air vanished from her lungs.

Never, not before she'd left or after she returned had Yoruichi ever said she needed her. Yoruichi inhaled ready to argue her case further.

Joining the band was a better then her being requested to commit seppuku.

"Sure, I'll join."

Yoruichi paused in the middle of her asking and stared at her, then after a second pulled her into a close hug. After a few moments of dazed reminiscence she pulled away, with what seemed to be an angry blush on her face.

"I'll be going then." Soi muttered and stated for the door before she could be embarrassed again.

Kuukaku reappeared after her prolonged stay in the kitchen with a glass of something of other in her hand.

"Probably won't be strong enough for yer tastes Soi, but it is pretty good stuff," She said taking more to the glass then to her guest.

"No thanks, I have to drive myself home." A car accident was not on her list of things too do.

Kuukaku glanced between the rooms other to inhabitants, calculating what had occurred. Then she turned to Soi with an overly suggestive smirk.

"You could spend the night, Ganju's out."

Soi gave her a cynical look and said, "And get raped, no thanks." She said her goodbyes and walked out the door.

Kuukaku turned to Yoruichi, "Was the drunken act really necessary?" Yoruichi had sat back down and was grinning at the door, as if she could see Soi pushing the elevator button repeatedly on the other side.

"You think she could've managed a conversation with me if she wasn't worried about how you were taking care of me? Got any stronger painkillers my leg's hurt like a bitch" Kuukaku smiled, "Well you got exactly what you wanted." Yoruichi smirked at her over the couch's arm.

"Except for some milk, I could really use some milk."


	9. Agent

-1Even as Urahara was extensively impressed by her fingers sailing over the strings tension, Yoruichi remained hatefully ignorant as she sat by them still unable to stand. The doctors suggested she not move from her home at all but considering she still hadn't settled down, she just continued to change her residence every time she wanted to go somewhere else.

"You're pretty good, how long did you say you've been playing?"

"Around six years" She glanced at Yoruichi, remembering the exact moment that her ex-idol had held her hands against the smooth wooden neck of an acoustic guitar and taught her how to express herself.

Yoruichi's face showed no sign of this allusion. Urahara could've left it at that but something that Soi guessed to be an attempt at manipulation got in his way of terminating the conversation. "If I remember correctly that's a little after the time Yoruichi-chan started living in Tokyo?" It was a statement and a question at the exact same time, Soi Fong sneered, "Is it now, I hadn't noticed." Yoruichi finally reacted with some kind of secret smile.

"Ara, a coincidence if I ever saw one," Urahara apparently had decided to end his manipulation there and go on to a different subject. "So what are you doing for Christmas Soi-kun?" Yoruichi answered for her as if exercising her knowledge of Soi's past and present, "Her family's strict Chinese Buddhist she usually doesn't celebrate it." Urahara held the rim of his hat and glanced between to two. "Ah, yes that's correct I was informed that you're from a Chinese family correct? Still Soi-kun should celebrate!"

Soi nodded, "Ninth generation, royal guard family." She ignored that last part.

Yoruichi was trying to look detached from the communication but couldn't manage to ignore the tone of Soi's voice when she said, "I'm the last one."

Urahara's eyes peered out from beneath his hat, "Really now?"

"Yes, I'm not having children and all of my brothers are dead so I'm committing genetic suicide and ending my family's name."

Urahara looked at her hard, seriousness in his eyes, "No wonder they kicked you out."

Soi gritted her teeth and was ready to strike him with her guitar in a very uncomfortable place when Yoruichi said, "It was her choice to come here."

In a very anticlimactic many Kuukaku burst through the door of the studio she had all but bought for them, grinning from ear to ear. "Mornin', I've gotten you three a gift"

Her smile didn't even leave when she saw the grave faces of her companions, following into the room was a boy with spiked silver hair and cold eyes, his button down shirt and pressed slacks betraying his youth.

"This is Hitsugaya Toushiro; he has an offer for you."

Yoruichi grinned, looking dignified despite her inability to stand. "Hitsugaya Toushiro, name sounds familiar, now where have I heard it? Hmm." She cupped her chin in mock contemplation.

The visitor stuffed his hands in his pockets and closed his eyes annoyed, "You should remember me, and you almost ruined my father's career."

Yoruichi snapped her fingers as if suddenly figuring it out, "That's right! You've grown, still short I see."

Hitsugaya smirked, "Don't expect to be all buddy buddy with me; abandoning people usually makes them less than amiable." Yoruichi smiled and rubbed her jaw where the recently vanished bruise had been, "You don't have to tell me twice."

Hitsugaya's demeanor changed to pure business, "Let's get down too it then, we want to get Soul Cutter back on stage."

Yoruichi copied his sudden change of pace, "I'm sorry, Soul Cutter broke up." Hitsugaya looked at Soi, his face disbelieving, until he realized it and changed to a stoic scowl. "Does it matter, everyone's already heard about your return and Soi Fong-sin's involvement. You can call yourself whatever you want."

Soi was obviously disdained by her being lumped together with Yoruichi, and muttered, "Yeah it was a tearful reunion; the second she saw me she just jumped right of stage and gave me a big hug."

The joke was apparently lost on Hitsugaya though Kisuke and Shiba stifled laughs. Yoruichi decided to add to it. "Oh, Soi-chan's just embarrassed, I pulled her back stage and we just fucked right there."

Soi glared daggers at her as Hitsugaya apparently got the message.

"So this offer, what does it entail?"

Urahara took the helm; he seemed the type that would be good at such things.

"One-oh, my father's label, is hosting a concert as a New Years celebration; we want you guys to headline." Kuukaku smacked the boy hard on his back and he stumbled forward a few feet. "So guys whadya think? Sound worth it?"

Before they were all ready to happily jump around, Urahara smirked and said, "And the pay?"

Hitsugaya regained himself from Kuukaku's friendly assault and adjusted his tie.

"Unfortunately we can't enter you directly under the label but I'll give you fifty percent of the proceeds."

Soi's eyes widened but Urahara was the one who spoke, "Very generous Toushiro-kun."

Hitsugaya sneered, "With the profits you guys will rake in fifty is enough for me, but there is one condition." The room went quiet, waiting for the catch.

"My father requested a special agent for you guys." The door to the studio opened and the man standing there could've been a permanent fixture inside the wooden doorframe. He had dark skin with dread locks and loomed over everyone in the room. His clothes were neat but in an almost mafia-esque fashion and he carried with him an air of confidence and mysteriousness that only succeeded in losing Soi's trust. His darkened glasses weren't helping

Hitsugaya closed his eyes and cleared his throat, "This is Tousen Kaname, and he's been assigned to you as an agent for advertising and booking. If there are any problems he will tell me."

The stone like man raised his hand and pulled the glasses from his face in one quick motion, revealing white eyes. No one but Soi seemed to notice this little detail. He muttered in a deep voice, "It is nice to meet you all."

Urahara smiled, "Nice to meet you Tousen-san."

Yoruichi simply eyes him up and down looking slightly suspicious.

"Thank you Hitsugaya-kun, we'll be in touch. Meanwhile, mind letting us continue with our practice?"

Hitsugaya nodded and motioned for Tousen to leave, as he turned Yoruichi muttered, "I see your daddy's keeping a short leash on me."

Hitsugaya spoke with his back to the group, "Wouldn't want you skipping town again." He turned revealing half of his youthful face as he glanced at Soi, "Of course, I personally think it's covered already."

He left without a word and Kuukaku started saying things about going to celebrate, all Soi could do was think about the boy's cold eyes and how they knew something she didn't.


	10. Blood and Nicotine

_Happy seven more days until Valentine's Day (as well five more days till Soi's birthday) here's a chapter to celebrate _

_Oh and Someone requested a picture of Soi Fong playing guitar , so a namelessly awesome person decided to draw it. The link is my profile as for some reason FFN is not letting me put it here._

* * *

"So you're not doing anything for Christmas?"

Kuukaku lit up a cigarette in her personal fashion which seemed to contain a subtle finesse that Soi had never attempted to analyze. The flame of her expensive looking silver lighter came dangerously close to the older woman's rough hand, making Soi flinch from the imagined heat even though Kuukaku didn't seem to notice. The lighter had been a birthday gift from Yoruichi around five years ago. Soi remembered the graceless way the gift was presented, Yoruichi had been grinning as she threw the small piece of equipment from her car window, telling 'Kuukaku to think fast'. Lucky for Soi's rather in the way head, Kuukaku was a very speedy thinker.

Urahara and Yoruichi had taken their method of transportation and Soi had plans to catch the 9:30 train home, after the drinking they'd done to consummate their suddenly appeared gig she had no intention of riding in a car with either Kisuke or Yoruichi and thought that Kuukaku, whom had the highest liquor tolerance of the group was her safest company.

"Nothing planned,"

They both knew Soi wasn't big on the whole big happy family holiday celebration of joy on earth thing. Kuukaku offered her a cigarette she took it and held out her palm for the lighter, in an unnecessary gesture Kuukaku lit it for her, she nodded a simple thank you.

"I didn't know you smoked."

"You just happen to be carrying my favorite brand."

A lopsided grin posted itself on Kuukaku's face, "Ya just happen to like the same smokes as Yoruichi?"

Soi exhaled a long line of smoke and glanced up at the sky, darkened with winter; it seemed she was only out of the house at night nowadays.

"What a coincidence."

"Well, if ya need somewhere to go on Christmas Eve or something my door's always open."

Soi almost laughed, where had her door been for those years Yoruichi had vanished?

"Right."

Silence fell between them, neither feeling the need to create conversation that would only consist of awkward avoidance of the past.

"Hey kid, ya do know she didn't mean to up and leave like that? Ya can stop carvin' her name into your arm or whatever little hate ritual it is ya' perform."

Her voice was gruff and defiant, it irritated Soi in its familiarity, the fact that it hadn't changed.

"So what the hell was she doing Kuukaku?"

The bitterness laced her words; she attempted to soothe her temper with another dose of nicotine.

"It's complicated, but does she really need an excuse to go about her business. Stop being a brat, the past is the past, ya' wanna lose her again? Maybe she was jus' tryin' to make ya more independent"

The words were so completely true and exactly what she didn't want to hear, she momentarily wondered if Kuukaku had some odd mind reading ability. Soi stared surprised at her in the semi-darkness, taken aback by her bluntness and accuracy. Her face was illuminated eerily by the cigarette smothering between her lips, she looked away from her accuser, "Well she got what she wanted didn't she?"

Kuukaku was about to lose her temper with Soi's stubbornness as a crash sounded from a nearby alley, both assumed defensive stances at the same time.

A shadow stumbled awkwardly out of the alley, staggering until they steadied themselves against the brick of a nearby building.

"Oi, you okay there?"

The person turned dazed and his identity became known to the pair, "Aizen?"

Blood trickled from his hairline and one of his eyes was swollen shut, his skin seemed to be an assortment of blues, purples, and blacks as well as splashes of red that soaked through his light colored shirt. He seemed about to pass out and unfortunately for him, he had just been rescued by possibly the two least compassionate women in Tokyo. Neither made a move to assist him, both still wary of an attacker in the vicinity. "You okay Sousuke?" Though her obviously wasn't, Kuukaku couldn't help but ask.

For a second the man steadied himself, and then his body suddenly slumped like a doll against the wall beside him. Now the two were moving, Soi got there first and saw the full damage on Aizen's body, their wasn't a normal colored patch of skin on this guy and his arm was bent at an odd angle, that's when she saw the blood streaming from a cut on his side, a stab wound. Kuukaku came up besides her handing her a small pocket knife, she flipped it open and sliced easily through Aizen's shirt, bunching up the disregarded blood soaked fabric she pushed it to the gash in an attempt to slow the stream.

She pulled her cell-phone from her back pocket and hit redial, blood smeared the phone's plastic.

As it rang she told the phone to hurry and shifted it to her other shoulder, "M'ello? This is Isane speaking?"

The voice on the other end was slurred with tiredness.

"Isane, sorry to wake you but I have a situation." That was the understatement of the year.

Isane suddenly sounded alert, "Not a problem I was on call last night, what do you need?"

Soi hurriedly recited the problem as Kuukaku took the job of holding in Aizen's insides; she pulled him to his feet, slinging his limp arm over her shoulder.

"Okay, first off don't move him!" Her warning had come too late and Soi glared at Kuukaku.

"And if he's already been moved?"

Isane was silent for a second, "You need to get him to a hospital quick, if there's internal bleeding he might not have too long." Judging by the amount of blood already on Soi's hands and shirt she thought the external bleeding was the thing worth worrying about.

"Soi, where are you?  
She exited the alley and rattled off the first handful of bar names and street addresses she found

Soi heard Isane mutter a noise of understanding or that could have just been her falling over while pulling her pants on in an attempt to hurry out of her apartment.

"Sit tight, I'll be there in a sec."

* * *

She'd been sitting under the glowing fluorescent lights of the scarcely populated emergency waiting room for what had seemed like an extremely long twenty minutes. Hospitals were one of her least favorite places on this planet, which was probably how she and Isane had become friends in the first place. Who needs to spend a bunch of money in the emergency room when you have a walking hospital living down the hall? Kuukaku had left to find Urahara and Yoruichi while Isane had followed Aizen and his emergency medical entourage through the double doors into the hospital's inner workings. 

She'd wanted to leave since she'd shown up but had no way of procuring a car and she doubted she'd catch the train now.

Burying her face in her hands she wondered if their was anywhere to get a soda around here, she'd washed herself as best she could when she came in but flecks of the blood that had previously been caked under her nails still remained.

Not long ago Isane had come out and reported he'd been cracked over the head pretty hard and stabbed twice then beaten to a pulp, of course she had said it in medical jargon that Soi found to be a useless euphemism using far too many big words in an attempt to distract from a bad situation.

The whoosh of the automatic doors pulled her forehead from her palms, Hinamori stood across the room, looking worried out of her mind still in her peach pink pajamas. Hinamori caught sight of Soi and crossed the room in a hurry, nearly tripping over a toy set out for children unlucky enough to find themselves waiting here. "Is Sousuke okay?"

Soi sat hunched over with her elbows on her knees, looking up at the girl.

"Aizen's being stabilized."

She didn't add the 'I think' onto the end of her sentence, figuring Hinamori needed some substantial information at this point. Hinamori looked nearly in tears, "What happened?"

Soi stood up; they were about the same height despite the age difference.

"He was attacked."

She didn't want to go into full detail of Aizen's appearance; she was still trying to erase the disturbing image from her head. She was silent, Soi's eyes met Hinamori's and saw the pure terror within them as they focused on her bloodstained tee-shirt.

Soi swore loudly as she stared at the reddened garment, Hinamori covered her mouth with a hand, tears now visible, "God."


	11. Things to do while waiting for the Devil

_My friend_ _informed me today that I'm not allowed to give up on this story_

_Thanks to o0.meats.of.evil.0o for beta reading but since her grammar sucks almost a bad as mine I don't know how much better that will be_

_Things are lookin' up, lookin' down_

* * *

When Soi woke up, she was confused about her location. The buzzing fluorescent lights misguided her senses making her think that she was still asleep, perhaps in a nightmare of some sort. She shifted her hand, hoping to find some solid substance that could bring her into the real world, but instead, brushed something soft. Her fuzzy eyes stared into her lap where the orange fabric of Yoruichi's jacket had draped itself over her knees, she guessed it had been on her shoulders. Before she could remember her state of mind, a happy smile graced her lips at this sweet cliché.  
It was quickly extinguished as she caught sight of Urahara meandering her way; he yawned slightly and slumped into the chair beside her.  
"You're awake."  
Soi adjusted herself in the chair and rubbed the sleep from her eyes with one hand, with the way Urahara eyed her she guessed the gesture made her look more childish than she intended.  
"Mmmm, how's Aizen?"  
Urahara seemed to lean forward slightly in his seat, "Well you see…"  
She knew he was attempting to build tension, but she leaned in as well, trying to get his words passed her sleepy ears.  
After a moment of silence he whispered just loud enough to hear, "He left the hospital."  
She jammed his hat down even further onto his messy blonde head as if attempting to smother his brain with the stripes. "Then why, exactly, are we still here?"  
Re-adjusting his hat, he looked at her beneath the rim, "Yoruichi didn't want to wake you."  
Soi looked at him questioningly; her mouth slightly ajar as if he was kidding and she didn't know quite how to respond. Something warm landed in her lap; she stared down at a hot coffee drink that lay innocently on the orange fabric over her thighs. Her eyes followed the throw's arch to Yoruichi, who popped the top of a similar drink with only one hand. She turned the little bit of metal used to open the can to the side in a habitual manner, as she sat across a row of seats on the other side of the room and gulped down quite a bit of it. "Unfortunately he's right." She said wiping her mouth on her sleeve.  
Soi picked up the drink peering at it curiously, it was a hot drink from a vending machine nearby, "It'll probably taste like shit, but you have to drive me to a place where I can sleep, so I need you alert."  
Soi opened hers after a moment of embarrassed difficulty; the top outsmarted her for a second.  
She heard Yoruichi stifle a laugh, but had to say she was right; it did taste like shit.  
"So why exactly am I driving you home," She said after swallowing the hot liquid, trying not to taste as much of it as possible. Urahara answered for her, "Well I need to stay here in case he comes back."  
"Aizen? Why the hell would he come back?"  
Urahara gave an uneasy glance in Yoruichi's direction; she was too busy playing with the bit of metal on her can to respond, "Well, I said he left, it's more like escaped."  
Soi managed not to spit spray the entire waiting room, "What the hell, he just left?"  
Instantly Urahara's hand clamped over her mouth and she reflexively elbowed him in the gut. When he recovered, he pointed to a small lump on the chairs near Yoruichi. After further examination, she found it was Hinamori, sleeping soundly.

* * *

"So the bastard just left her there?"  
Soi finally understood why Yoruichi hadn't been too fond of Aizen; unfortunately, she was too focused on the road to go into a full rant. Soi Fong had never been the best at driving, and the winters ice and unfamiliar car weren't helping her very much. Yoruichi lounged across the back seat; the ponytail her hair was arranged in pressed to the glass of the window in a way Soi thought would hurt her head.  
"Doesn't surprise me." She muttered distractedly, "He used to be this big time gang guy; he came to Urahara with some sob story since they were friends or whatever."  
Soi glanced at her in the rearview mirror; her black tee shirt was riding up slightly, revealing a sliver of her chocolate colored midriff. Soi focused back on the road, but the bit of cocoa skin caught her attention in a rather deplorable way every time she checked the driver behind her.  
"Gang?"  
Yoruichi lolled her head to look at her through the gap between the seat and car by her head, "Not a nice bunch, the Arran-something or other." Soi nodded and stopped at a red light, a sudden realization hit her and she turned, looking passed the side of her seat to meet Yoruichi's eyes. The gold was tinged with red from the nearby stoplight and she looked right back at her without any real expression, the shadows from the car and multiple lights made her skin a collage of different darkness.  
"What is it?"  
It was a gentle coax as if Yoruichi was trying to avoid flaring Soi's temper, but it brought to light the fact that she had gotten suddenly distracted, which she disliked.  
"Where am I driving you, anyway?"  
Yoruichi looked at her pondering and then said, "Well I sorta thought you'd figure that one out."  
"Do you have a key to Urahara's house?"  
"Bastard never gave me one, said I'd steal stuff from the shop when he wasn't there."  
"Is Kuukaku around?"  
"She's on a 'business trip'"  
Soi sighed exasperated and let her head hit the steering wheel; a loud honk emanated from the car and she snapped back into position so fast her neck hurt. There was another loud honk and she thought she'd some how angered the car by hitting her head against its steering wheel. Then she realized it was from behind, and the light in front of her had turned to a dull green without her knowing it. Her foot hit the gas and she turned sharply. Yoruichi didn't even shift in the back seat.

When they walked through the door to Soi's apartment, she was already regretting her decision. Yoruichi had been smirking at her as the two had struggled up the stairs, quite a feat with Yoruichi's injury. Apparently, she'd be okay within the next week or so according to Unohana, who had become a constant visitor of their building as of late. Not that she had been asking around about knee injuries, it just happened to come up. She assisted Yoruichi to the couch and then sat down; the woman muttered, "Weird way to spend the day before Christmas Eve." Soi Fong, not having known this, agreed with an automatic nod.  
The blood that was still on her shirt caught her eye, "I'm gonna go change, there's food in the kitchen and milk in the fridge." She tried to remember what kind of milk she had bought, knowing she'd hear about it for a week if it was 'that messed with skim stuff'.  
"Hey, you wouldn't happen to have any extra clothes would ya? I can stand to be in this shirt; it smells like the hospital."  
Soi suddenly felt a surge of nostalgia, how many times had they had this exact same conversation in the past? How many times had Yoruichi borrowed one of her over-sized sleeping shirts (all of Soi's tees became belly shirts on the well-endowed Yoruichi) and not returned them? You think she would have learned.  
"I have something I'm sure."  
This pleasant conversation was really pissing her off, though she had no idea why the conversation shouldn't be pleasant. They'd spent enough time together that Soi could at least speak with her without getting angry. She walked out of the room before her half angry half nostalgically pleased mind could start saying things out loud that she didn't want the woman to hear. Instead, she went to her room and began to rummage through her drawers. To her surprise, in the bottom of the last drawer lay one of Yoruichi's shirts, either forgotten or loaned. She pulled off her bloody garment and noticed the red had soaked through to the white material of her bra, and had dried itself on her stomach. Not thinking twice, she headed for the bathroom door beside her closet and cranked the hot water of the shower onto high, then headed back to her bedroom door where she tossed the shirt she had gotten to the couch where Yoruichi was lying. She sat up, the shirt covering her face in a childish way. She pulled it off and Soi was glad she'd hidden behind the door having not yet put a shirt on. "Hey, where's your remote?"  
Soi hardly watched TV and hadn't a clue; Yoruichi must have realized this by the look on her face and muttered, "Ah, I see, never mind then." and slumped back to the couch.

* * *

The hot water of the shower had felt good on her pale skin, which she thought might have been frostbitten at this point. She exited the bathroom in a cloud of steam already dressed in a tee-shirt and panties, being the type who didn't feel comfortable walking around naked, even in her own house. What she found was Yoruichi in her bed.  
How she had managed to get there was a mystery, but the small amount of stuff knocked off her dresser was an indication that it had been difficult. The woman was splayed over the comforter, lying on her side. Soi scowled angrily at her.  
She let the towel that she had been using to dry her hair fall to her shoulders and grabbed a pair of pajama pants from her dresser before proceeding towards the woman's sleeping figure. Looming over her for a few seconds, she said her name several times but got no response except for heavy breathing. Her scowl stayed in place the entire time even as she sat down next to her on the bed.  
"You really messed up you know that?"  
Soi asked the sleeping Yoruichi quietly, she stared at her knees, planting her hands beside her.  
"Running off like that was such a dumbass thing to do, must not have been too great if you came back here huh?" She glanced over at Yoruichi's closed eyes as if waiting for an answer or some sign that she wasn't really sleeping at all; somewhere in her head, a little bit of her hoped she was just faking it.  
Soi's hand twitched and her arm lifted, she cursed then laughed in her head. Yoruichi had driven her limbs to go against her. The traitorous hand reached over and lightly brushed a few strands of dark purple hair away from the woman's face. Yoruichi made a slight noise in her sleep and shifted her shoulders, Soi's eyes trailed down her neck, the purple hair was still in a pony tail and she could see down the back of Yoruichi's shirt. There on her shoulder, emblazoned in coffee colored skin, was an elegant black butterfly.

Yoruichi had thought she felt someone touch her face. Normally, such a thing would not wake up the deep sleeper, but that touch was so light and nostalgically familiar that she couldn't help but be jarred from the sleep she had found in Soi's bed. Usually she was okay with couches, but Soi Fong's bed was probably one of the most comfortable things in this hemisphere, and well worth the effort of staggering and limping into the room. When her eyes cracked open expecting to catch someone in the act of adoring her in her sleep, all she found was emptiness, she sat up in the bed and examined the room around her, then heard a soft chord float in from the slightly open door. With difficulty, she stood and half stumbled- half fell her way to the door. Glancing out, she saw Soi sitting in a chair from her kitchen island strumming her guitar. The sudden entrance of Yoruichi, whom would have been undetected if not left awkward by injury, caught Soi's attention, and she looked up at her surprised to see her awake.  
"Did I wake you?"  
"I'm not sure, did you?"  
Soi Fong faked a confused look and Yoruichi pretended to buy it, "Whatever then, G'night."  
She turned and waved over her shoulder. "Goodnight."


	12. Foreign Legion

Kuukaku took another drink; she hadn't slept last night, mostly due to the small bundle of blankets currently curled up on her couch. She had come home late after their search for Aizen and found Hinamori outside her door, curled into a ball, tears just barely dry on her cheeks. Kuukaku had sighed, picked the girl up with ease and carried her to the couch. "Sis, I can't find the-"  
She punched Ganju squarely in the face for his thoughtless noisemaking. She didn't know why she was still living with the man but guessed it had something to do with the incident that led her parents out of this country. Sitting down at the end of the couch at Hinamori's feet she reclined against the couch's corner and listened as the girl beside her stirred distressed in her sleep. Her head lulled back and she stared at the ceiling. "Aizen, I'm gonna kill you."

* * *

It was almost five in the afternoon and no sound had entered Soi's bedroom, whether it had some how been sound proofed or if noise just feared to incur her wrath, the room was perfectly silent. This might have explained how Yoruichi could still be sleeping in her bed. Soi stood over her with a mug in her hand; she had work off today and was planning on simply shaking the intruder until she woke up. Instead she found herself extending her arm and turning her wrist causing a thin but steady stream of coffee to pour onto the sleeping woman's tee-shirt clad back. Yoruichi sat bolt upright looked over at her then fell out of bed onto her feet. She then adjusted herself to be sitting against Soi's legs; her feet hidden underneath the bed then looked up at her reluctant benefactor. "I've called you twenty-six times, get up."  
"Was scalding me necessary?"  
"Yes, come with me."  
Soi grabbed her arm and quite literally dragged her to the doorway, sitting on the couch was a man with long silver hair and against the wall was another guy with a black ponytail and a floral shirt.  
"Oh Yoruichi! Nice to see you!" Said the man in the floral shirt the other looked apologetic, "I'm sorry did we interrupt something?" Soi now noticed that Yoruichi was lacking pants though her underwear was luckily in place.  
Yoruichi sat on the floor, not wanting to go through the effort of stranding up.  
"Yes, you did Ukitake, and I'm angry."  
"You two didn't interrupt anything except perhaps her putting pants on." Soi muttered angrily.  
The man in the floral print seemed to smother a laugh, "Ara ara Yoruichi, cute girl you've got."  
Yoruichi smirked some hidden reply and continued the conversing "So, Shunsui, Ukitake, to what do I owe the pleasure?"  
Yoruichi all but climbed up Soi's body in an attempt to stand and she didn't let go of her shoulder even after she'd finally stabilized herself.  
Ukitake stood up with a cough, "We're here on request from Genryuusai, the Arrancar have been up to something, and he thought you should know. We don't have specifics, but he figured he'd have you keep a closer eye on Aizen."  
Yoruichi smiled, but didn't mention the fact she had misplaced Aizen, "You didn't have to come all the way for that, but tell him that I owe him."  
Shunsui patted his long-haired friend hard on the back, "You know Yama-ji won't accept any favors from a Shihouin. We decided to come and keep an eye on things here, Yama-ji has Komamura to keep him company." Soi was completely lost on what was going on, as she'd never heard of any of these people before. "You're staying in town then?"  
The door opened up a crack and Soi snapped to attention, a girl with oval glasses and a heavy book in hand glanced through the doorway. "Byakuya is expecting us."  
Shunsui looked between the new girl and Yoruichi. "Ah thanks Nanao-chan, I apologize Yoruichi, but we'll have to be going, hate to get Mr. 'over anal traditionalists' panties in a bunch."  
"Oh, well we can take you over! We were gonna go get dinner for Christmas."  
Soi's head snapped sideways. "Where are we going, now?"  
Yoruichi gave her smile that was apology and wanting and begging and control all in one very small secret place, "You don't have to come Soi, but could you at least drive me?"  
For a second Soi was dumbstruck for absolutely no reason and she figured she must look pretty unsophisticated with her mouth hanging open like that. Knowing she couldn't deny a person physically handicapped, plus part of her really wanted to help Yoruichi, she nodded and shut her mouth. She got a pat on the head as she was left with the two men while Yoruichi put on clothes. They started talking to each other in whispered voices about presumably not too important secrets and all she could think was 'If a smile can still get me I got a long way to go.'

She didn't stay. When Yoruichi leaned back into the window, Urahara waited behind her in case she needed support and asked if she'd like to come with them to dinner, saying, 'I'll pay, don't worry about it, plus everyone else is inside'. Part of her wanted to stay, well, maybe most of her wanted to stay. This was overridden by the little bit in the back of her brain that told her this was the past she ran away from and she wasn't allowing herself to go back, especially not arm in arm with Yoruichi.  
When she got back to her building, it was dark and she realized that she was spending Christmas Eve alone; Yoruichi's return hadn't changed that. There was a small mewing noise and she turned her head as she got out of the car to a small black kitten sitting on the sidewalk. She smiled subconsciously, shut the car door slowly, and walked over as cautiously and non-threateningly as she could. Crouching down on the cold sidewalk she put out her hand and the cat pushed at her palm with its nose. She petted it slightly and heard it start purring before suddenly running off. With a sigh she stood up and watched it disappear into the alley.  
In a sudden jolt, someone's meaty arms wrapped around her from behind in a violent bear hug. She kicked her feet, but found she had been lifted off the ground and everything was starting to look an odd shade of orange as she struggled for breath.  
"What the hell! Ohmaeda, I never said attack her, down! Now!"  
Soi felt her feet meet the ground and someone's hands support her as the dizziness went away. When her eyes composed themselves she was looking a girl with spiky black hair. If this was her then that must be-  
Without much thought she spun around and planted a few quick kicks to her attacker's chest, the bulky Ohmaeda fell over like a tree and made a loud crash.  
"Hahaha told ya not to attack her like that."  
She grabbed a hold of the other girl's collar in her fist. "You have ten seconds to explain why you're here."  
Tatsuki Arisawa looked surprised but not above protecting herself if Soi took another step towards violence.  
"We're here on order from your parents, they've decided if you don't return within the time from now to your birthday you'll be exiled." Soi let go of the slight girl's collar and she brushed off her black jacket.  
"Is that all?" The big guy had regained himself and he said in his deep voice. "If you don't show up, I'm gonna drag you back by force." Soi smirked, "I'd like to see you try."  
Tatsuki put a hand on her shoulder and Soi looked at it as if it were a bug she didn't want on her.  
"Soi please, at least come back to explain. I don't wanna have to force you to come back or anything and-" Soi was already walking through the buildings door, "Mind your own business." She then paused in the doorway and looked over at the girl.  
"Hey, Tatsuki, Orihime is living in Byakuya's building now."  
Tatsuki nodded a reluctant thank you.  
Yoruichi returned a lot earlier than Soi thought she would, in fact she didn't even entirely know if Yoruichi was going to return at all. She was sitting at her desk when the woman stumbled in, "Did the cops come or something?" Yoruichi grinned, "Nah, I just wanted to come home early."  
"Home?"  
Yoruichi completely ignored the question and fell onto the couch. Letting it slide for now, Soi turned back to her work. After a few seconds of silence Yoruichi's arms were across her shoulders, her face buried into Soi's neck, she was sure the taller woman could hear her suddenly quickened pulse. "Merry Christmas." Lips crept towards her ear but she found herself unable to take it.  
"Please don't."  
Yoruichi jumped away as if she'd been shocked. "I'm sorry, that was stupid."  
Soi was shaking, more from the frightening amount of regret she felt for stopping her than anything else.  
"No, that was my bad; you can have the bed tonight."  
Yoruichi nodded, hiding her relief that she was not being kicked out. "Are you sure? I don't mind the couch." The air of caution was stifling.  
"Yeah, really, I want the couch tonight."  
As Yoruichi nodded and went off to the bedroom, Soi's throat burned.

"Hey, Yoruichi."

Yoruichi stopped tentatively and looked back at her, "Yeah, Soi?"

"I'm gonna take a trip to China."


	13. Concerto Quick Dependence

_I'm sorry my updating sucks so bad, I can only write at certain times or I have no confidence in the chapter and thusly can't bring myself to post it. _

* * *

Soi didn't mind flying, she didn't like jet lag or baggage claims and found the overall process of using an airport to be troubling but flying was something she enjoyed. She'd even been hang gliding before and skydiving once neither of which Yoruichi had taken part in as apparently she wasn't too fond of heights. The plane wasn't crowded and thanks to Tatsuki having a ticket she didn't have a problem with matters like that and now her benefactor for the trip slept quietly beside her. She guessed that the trip was being paid for by her family and would rather had paid for it herself then owe them something but she figured the ticket must cost close to $1200 dollars to pay for a trip from Tokyo to Beijing, then from Beijing to Zhengzhou. From there they'd most likely take a bus to Dengfeng then to the Shaolin temple, the trip would take awhile and she dreaded having to make the trek back to Japan but if she didn't clear this up with her family now or they'd no doubt have a team of ninjas or monks after her next. She stared out the window listening to the music streaming through her headphones, it was an old soul cutter CD that she tried to avoid listening to but since she wouldn't be participating in any of the vital practices before the gig and would have to at least make some effort towards keeping her skills sharp.

"_So where exactly are you staying?" _

_Soi Fong lay back over her couches arm and watched Isane making a sandwich in her kitchen. It had taken the girl forever to become comfortable in her house and not just sit on her hands on the couch and apologize every time she breathed to loud. As far as social skills went Soi didn't exert too much effort to being a hostess and didn't throw parties, so the only way she could maintain a steady flow of friendship would be close proximity in terms of location. Isane provided this as well as good advice and emergency medical care. Soi found this to be a trifecta. _

"_Around Mt. Song."_

_Isane nodded obviously clueless as to where that place could be and she just pushed the top half of her bread onto the sandwich. Soi sighed and went into an explanation._

"_It's in the Henan province, near Zhengzhou that's a little less than five hundred miles south of Beijing." _

_Isane nodded again this time comprehending what had been said and looked for a plate for her sandwich. _

_Despite her talking about her hometown she seemed bitter about this location._

_A loud knock emanated from the door and Soi vaulted over the couch to answer it._

_She cracked the door open and peeked out, a habit she'd acquired through paranoia. Standing there was a tall busty red-haired woman whom she recognized from one memory or another._

"_Matsumoto?"_

_The woman smiled and pushed through the door nearly knocking Soi back in the process._

"_Ah Soi-chan! So nice to see you again, it's been forever! Oh, who's this?"_

_Matsumoto had already gone on to examining Isane who seemed to be growing more and more timid by the second. Soi stepped in before the girl was scarred for life by Matsumoto's over zealous friendliness. _

_Soi grabbed her by the back of her jacket and pulled her away from Isane who seemed like she'd rather be cowering somewhere. _

"_Why are you here?"_

_Rangiku seemed to think for a second then snapped her fingers in the success of conquering her forgetfulness. "Right! My boss sent me here to tell you-" the woman took a deep breath then pretty much yelled, "Soi Fong you're not allowed to leave the country you're technically under a contract!!!" _

_Soi covered her ears the second the yelling started and winced when the display was completed._

"_Hitsugaya I presume?" _

_Rangiku nodded, "Yep, he seemed really pissed."_

_Soi scowled thinking of how eerily quickly information seemed to travel these days. "And why are you here? Shouldn't Tousen take care of these things?" _

"_Well Hitsugaya pretty much hired him to make Shihouin stay put. Funny you'd be the one fleeing."_

_Soi slowly started herding the woman toward the door. "I'm not fleeing I'm just visiting my parents, tell that kid: I'll be back before New Years and I won't ruin his little schemes."_

_Matsumoto turned back to look at her in the doorway._

"_Um, Soi-chan, one question?"_

"_What?"_

"_May I omit the 'kid' and 'little' from that sentence?"_

"_Whatever."_

* * *

Yoruichi ran her hand across the strings of Soi Fong's guitar. She wasn't supposed to be in Soi's house, this was made clear by the fact that the key had been moved from its hiding place in the vent. After a few minutes of fruitless searching in the vent she decided to try and loosen the lock enough to enter the apartment. This was technically breaking and entering but if she was caught she could claim she lived there and forgotten her key, after all it was somewhat true. She almost had the damned thing open when she felt someone behind her.

"Um what're you-?"

A short orange haired girl had stood staring at her with an expression of adoration.

"Y-Yoruichi-sama?"

Yoruichi knew that look well; it was the look of a fan. Perfect.

"Oh hello there, I seemed to have misplaced my key."

She smiled rubbing the back of her head, the girl immediately fumbled with a full key chain, isolating a silver key from the bunch. Yoruichi wondered what kind of job might require the use of so many keys.

She pushed the key into the lock and turned it allowing the door to slide open. Yoruichi smiled, "Thank you…..?"

The girl looked like she snapped out of a daze, "Yes of course, I'm Kiyone Kotetsu."

Yoruichi knew that name; it was the name of one of Ukitake's friends, instead of continuing the conversation Yoruichi pet the girls head in a light affectionate way. She looked like she almost passed out.

* * *

At this moment Hinamori sat in the lobby of Kuukaku Shiba's hotel. She was sure that Aizen would come back, after all the Aizen she knew would never leave her here like this, he was probably just taking care of something and would be back soon wearing that same chivalrous smile. She was sure of it. Even so she could not bring herself to go sleep in the bed they had shared not too long ago. The lobby was never desolate but due to the fact it was close to dinner there were fewer people there than normal. The seat she sat in was one of those deep comfortable ones and she just sort if curled into a ball there, her thoughts ping-ponging off the sides of her head.

With this maelstrom of thoughts she didn't notice a shadow of a man stand before her.

She looked up at him curiously; his eyes were hidden behind slit like lids and silver bangs.

"Hiya Momo-chan."

"Who're you?"

He leaned down and petted her head. "I'm a friend of Sousuke."

Her eyes widened, "Aizen?"

"Mmmhmm, my names Gin and he told me to come get you."

Hinamori smiled; of course he would come to get her.

The man offered his hand to her and she took it, he played the role of a gentleman and linked arms with her leading her out the door.

Hitsugaya standing on the other side of the lobby saw all of these events. The girl registered faintly in his mind but he made no utterance of her name, instead of thinking of whom she was, he thought of how this city seemed to gather old connections and force them back together. Matsumoto on the other hand wasn't so quiet in her realizations.

"Gin?"


	14. BladeMemory

_Italics are Yoruichi's memory_

* * *

Yoruichi was looking for clothes she had left in Soi Fong's apartment years ago. Well that was her excuse to herself which was odd as she usually didn't make excuses too herself, it was much more efficient to just do what you want. Of course she stopped needing to use that explanation when the smooth cold looking blade of a Chinese saber glinted atop a pile of what appeared to be scrap books.

Her eyes sparkled, reflecting the blade. Clutching the handle she pulled it up and held it like a warrior, entertaining herself with the weapons weight in her hands. Standing with a groan in response to the remaining ache in her knees, she brought the blade swiftly through the air, Soi's martial had always been polished and Yoruichi had a bit of knowledge of the girl's training and family customs but thought that keeping a blade like this in a closet was a waste.

* * *

"_So you're one of those trained from birth deals?" _

_Back when they first met the girl had always looked surprised whenever she was spoken too. Yoruichi had been lounging on a chair in Byakuya's very large house, her legs splayed over one of the chair arms and her head thrown back across the other, staring upside down at the introverted girl sitting with her hands in her lap. _

"_I guess." _

"_Ever kill anyone?"_

_Soi just looked to the side not saying anything, "Pleading the fifth? That's only in those western cop dramas."_

_Yoruichi pushed herself to a proper sitting position and leaned her face into her hand. "Ah that's okay."_

"_Four times."_

_Yoruichi's eyebrows rose as she looked at the girl and she smiled, "Wow that beats my record I'm only at one." The girl looked surprised and curious so Yoruichi continued. "There was this accident and my actions got my friends older brother killed by his friend, messed up her arm too, they almost had to cut it off." _

_There was silence for a few seconds as the girl looked at the hands in her lap, "Now who sounds like a western crime drama now?"_

_Yoruichi laughed as Rukia poked her head through the door across the room. "Hey Yoruichi, Kuukaku wants you."_

"_I already know that now why are you talking to me?"_

_Rukia rolled her eyes and Soi didn't seem to get the play on words. Yoruichi muttered multiple okays and stood up on her way towards the door she walked passed Soi and ruffled her hair playfully, "See you again Soi-chan." The girl peeked up through her pressed down bangs and nodded looking slightly dazed._

_Rukia continued as Yoruichi walked past her, "Oh Soi Fong, nii-sama will be out soon."_

* * *

Yoruichi was awakened from her memory by the cell phone in her pocket tickling her hip, she jumped and nearly dropped the blade she was still holding on her foot. Luckily it missed; unluckily it landed point down in the hard-wood floor. She swore loudly and scrambled to answer her phone. 

"Hello?" She chastised herself for saying it just a little too loud.

"Yikes, Yoruichi did I interrupt something or what?"

"Sorry, Kuukaku, you almost made me drop a sword on my foot."

Kuukaku paused for a second probably wondering how she was supposed to react.

"Ah never mind, what d'ya want?"

"Hitsugaya's coming over to hear us play, I told him Soi wouldn't be there but he said he didn't really care and that he didn't feel like canceling his evening plans."

That was typical of him.

"Kay, I'll be right over?"

"You need a ride, don't want you destroying your legs."

"Nah, I'm fine I'll take the train."

When Yoruichi arrived there was a crowd outside the hotel. There was a lot of yelling and it was all but impossible to see past the heads of the passerby. After a few seconds she climbed onto the nearby hood of a car and managed to see Hitsugaya take a swing and a miss at a taller man with similarly colored hair. The man dodged perfectly, both of his hands in the pockets of his dark blue hoodie. Yoruichi saw it in about three seconds the bulge in his pocket, the angle of his wrist.

A gun.

She climbed off the car and tried to push through the crowd but couldn't manage with her damaged lower body and expected any minute to hear the bang of a gun. Instead though she heard gruff angry yelling and the crowd dissipated. All that remained was Kuukaku holding Hitsugaya by the shoulder, the boy had a swelling cheek and his clothes and hair were mussed.

"Where's the other one?"

Kuukaku looked at her as if she was surprised she had actually made it. "He slipped away, slimy bastard."

"He had a gun."

Kuukaku looked surprised for a second then just looked annoyed, "Damn."

Hitsugaya released himself from Kuukaku's grip and straightened his shirt.

Rangiku came running up and after exchanging hello's with Yoruichi turned to her boss.

"Ah, he got'cha huh?"

Hitsugaya rubbed his damaged cheek.

"I think that might be from Kuukaku." Yoruichi muttered.

Kuukaku glared at her and then ushered them into the lobby. "Why exactly were you fighting with Mr. creepy face?"

"The bastard kidnapped Hinamori." Hitsugaya said through Matusmoto attempting to get a look at his damaged face.

Rangiku responded, "Well last I checked Sousuke and Gin were friends maybe he sent him to get his girl."

"And he came packing a gun?"

"Are you sure he had one?"

Yoruichi was slightly distracted by the pain in her legs that had returned from the activity, "Yeah I'm pretty sure."

Kuukaku looked between the tall woman and short boy. For a second thinking about the fact that they were probably exact opposites. "Well I'll call Ukitake and tell him, and then we can try and figure out what's going on."

Hitsugaya nodded and grabbed Matsumoto's arm heading for the elevator, expecting them to follow.

Kuukaku turned to her friend with her arms crossed over her sizeable chest.

"Tch, looks like you were tight about Aizen."

Yoruichi nodded and followed to the elevator.

* * *

Not far away a melancholic looking man with brilliant turquoise eyes and black hair, his cheek marked with an odd tattoo. He held a black book not far away from his face, scanning the lines. 

"Ulquiorra! Where the hell's the beer?!"

Another man without a shirt rummaged violently through the fridge, his hair dyed silver and sea foam. Smashing the door shut he scratched the back of his head and stared angrily at the other man waiting for a response.

"You drank it all."

Ulquiorra found himself seized by the front of his shirt.

"Damn idiot there's no way I drank all that."

Totally calm the Ulquiorra pulled his attackers hand away from his shirt with a secure hand. "Yes, Jack you did."

The violent man raised his fist, "How many times I gotta tell you my names Grimmjow!"

A door opened and both of the men turned to look. Standing in the doorway without glasses and sporting slicked back hair.

"We have some things to take care of."


	15. Swinging Jack

_a chapter with violence the characters are a tad OOC gomen -bow-_

* * *

Soi Fong sighed lightly, the fact that her father was currently away from the temple compound had almost been a relief, despite her self-reassurance that she could stand up to him. For some reason, the night wasn't cold even though it was winter, and thanked the sky for being tame. The view from the inside of her opened shoji was breathtaking to say the least. A million stars winked down on her, happy to see her after her time drowned in the light of the city. She had decided to sleep in her clothes as opposed to the monk garb that had been offered. There was only a small slice of the moon out tonight, and despite her attempts, her mind slowly shifted to Yoruichi. For a second she allowed her mind leniency, but after a few moments, she had to physically shake the thoughts away. On the other side of the room, the door slide open and Soi turned her head to recognize Tatsuki leaning against the frame. "Come in. 

Soi Fong turned back to the stars and view of the countryside at this elevation. Tatsuki sat down next to her quietly. "Pretty isn't it?"  
For the first time in a while Soi Fong didn't mind the conversation in place of silence.  
"Always is."  
Tatsuki sunk back into silence. It wasn't awkward as one would suspect of two people who hadn't seen each other in so long. It was as comfortable as her star-gazing by herself.  
"Hey, ya know that scary girl with the spiky hair and cigarettes?"  
Soi smiled at Tatsuki reenacted Kuukaku's dangerous grin. Soi nodded in confirmation, "Kuukaku."  
"That one! Before we left she said-" Tatsuki's voice lowered an octave turning into a rather convincing impersonation of the Shiba woman, "If anything happens to Soi, I'm gonna kick yer ass."  
Soi's head lolled back against the side of the open shoji beside her, smiling. She had no idea why she was so happy, maybe it was the fact that this thing with her family had been hanging over her head long enough to make her giddy about facing it or it was just the stars. "Tatsuki?"  
The spiky-haired girl looked from the outside to her. "Yeah?"  
"You hang around Orihime to much."

* * *

Miles away, Yoruichi relinquished her grip on the microphone and wiped sweat from her forehead. She could hear Urahara breathing heavily to her right, the small practice session had turned into a rehearsal and she was putting energy into it that she wasn't aware she possessed. The music was nowhere near where it was supposed to be but they all hoped that was due to their absence of a guitarist, which Hitsugaya had insisted, they do without until Soi's return. Yoruichi's leg's ached and she fell onto the couch face first, reveling in the feel of cold leather, but knowing it would soon become sticky from her body heat and sweat. Kuukaku stood from her drum set, stretching her arms and throwing her drumsticks onto Yoruichi's bare lower back; she'd stripped down to her sports bra in an adrenaline induced hot flash.  
Hitsugaya had begun speaking with Kisuke and Kuukaku walked over to the Shihouin on her couch.  
"Oi get up, put on a shirt."  
"Too hot." Yoruichi whined into the leather armrest, Kuukaku sighed and sat on her friends back, hearing a groan as her weight landed on a now writhing body.  
"Kuukaku, ge'off." Yoruichi elongated all of the vowels in her name in a whining manner. "You'll get your shirt on?" She said trying to speak sternly despite her smile.  
Yoruichi nodded into the armrest and Kuukaku stood up. Planting her hands on either side of her she pushed into a sitting position, "That's not fair you weigh more."  
Kuukaku put her hands on her hips, "I'm also taller and I got bigger breasts. Deal and get dressed."  
As Yoruichi mumbled something and went to retrieve her shirt, Urahara strode over to her and muttered, "He approved, but let's hope Soi's not outta practice when she comes back." Kuukaku shrugged, "I got faith in the kid and so does Yoruichi." Urahara gave a nod, seeming less than convinced.

* * *

Gin walked slowly down the sidewalk; the little Hitsugaya squirt had hardly scratched him, the van with Hinamori in it had escaped and all was going so according to plan that he couldn't help his sadistic smile from twisting his lips upwards, scaring small children as they passed. What was slightly unsettling was the woman he had undoubtedly seen in the crowds. Her surprised face was now tattooed to the inside of his eyelids, causing him great discomfort whenever he blinked. Even knowing it was Matsumoto, he chose not to admit it to himself as he walked into a large building and down a flight of stairs. A door blocked his way further and he knocked on it with his foot, reluctant to tear his hands from the warm confines of his hoodie's pockets as well as not wanting to take his hands off the firearm he had concealed there.  
The door opened and he walked into a bar. It was furnished nicely despite its somewhat hidden location. The place never fell into any kind of unseemliness or disrepair due to Aizen-sama's preferences. Sitting at one of the tables was a man with long blonde hair and another bulky looking person with flaming red hair. He recognized them as Illfort and Edorad, some of Grimmjow's more prominent lackeys. He did not acknowledge their existence and continued onward into one of the back rooms. Pressing through a door with his shoulder he came face to face with the hulking figure of Yammy who immediately moved out of the way for him to enter. Halibel leaned against a wall to the side, her eyes scanning the area, chin tucked into a scarf she wore. "Hey Hey where's Aizen?"  
Yammy answered, "With Ulquiorra and Grimmjow."  
"And where would that be exactly?"  
At that moment, Grimmjow had just brought a baseball bat to the side of someone's head and laughed as they hit the ground. Ulquiorra stared with disapproving eyes at the man's mess. Grimmjow grinned and flipped him the bird. "Now where the hell's the target?"  
The two of them had been sent to take care of two of Yamamoto's maggots, and had not yet been able to find them. The apartment had been transformed into a bloody mess; Ulquiorra had been told to make sure there were no casualties while Grimmjow ran rampant. Not how he would have preferred to do it.  
The door behind them opened and they both heard a gasp, a woman in oval glasses holding a small book was in the doorway with wide eyes. She turned to run but was caught in the back of her shoulder by the business end of a wooden bat. The weapon swung in an arch, going a little passed it's target and crashing into the door frame, the wood splintered and Grimmjow swore as loud as he possibly could.  
Laying in the doorway, the woman twitched slightly and began her attempt at crawling to salvation, which she must have known didn't really exist. Her hand extended to clutch the floor in front of her, Grimmjow's heavy boot made a crunching sound as he stepped on her fingers, she cried out in pain.  
Ulquiorra watched calmly, ready to stop the other man if he got too excessive. Not even his calm eyes could see how quickly another man appeared, tackling Grimmjow off of the woman and wrestling him to the floor. Not showing shock or support he watched as the new assailant, a scruffy looking man in a floral shirt, swung a large fist and struck his comrade hard across the face. Grimmjow smiled through a bloodied lip.  
His stoic demeanor terminated when he realized that this attacker was one of the two targets, his foot connected with the man's ribs. This allowed Grimmjow to get the upper hand.  
The woman had backed up against a wall and was about to launch a counter attack that was doomed to fail. She watched as one of Grimmjow's fists crushed into her rescuers face splattering blood across the floor. As he took the punches he turned to her and muttered, "Nanao-chan run." 


	16. And if they killed him

_my apologies for the wait but I come bearing good news, thanks to some free time and focus I've recently acquired I've bene able to work out an update schedule and I've hired someone to beat me mercilesslyif I don't keep to it ; _

* * *

Ukitake couldn't help but blame himself. One of his bouts of illness had left him bedridden during the time of the attack, and because he could not assist Shunsui, the man now lay in the hospital bed on the other side of the frosted glass. Ukitake stared into the snowy surface, watching Nanao's shadow leaning over his still unconscious friend.

He couldn't see his face, didn't want to see the injuries and thanked that the glass was just the right amount of translucent. The door opened, and Nanao exited, her face was drained of color and her good arm clutched the book she always held; her normally stern eyes were blank from shock. Her shoulder had been injured in the attack and her left arm was in a sling; the fingers on that limb were mostly broken and her hand was in a cast.

As she walked toward the silver-haired man, she stumbled, but was caught before further harm could come to her minimally damaged body.

The book she held fell to the linoleum with a hollow thump and her hand clung hopelessly to the fabric of the man's shirt. She buried her face in his chest and pretended she didn't want to cry. Juuishiro however, felt a small spot grow damp on his shirt and he lifted his arms to hold her close.  
His smile was filled with melancholia, but he still felt someone needed to smile. He looked towards the glass he didn't want to see through and silently apologized to his friend for touching 'his Nanao-chan' and promised to keep her safe until he came back.

"Excuse me."

Ukitake nearly jumped three feet. How the woman had appeared without footsteps was a mystery, but the face of Unohana was a familiar one from the many check-ups his body required, and she had a calming effect one might expect from someone devoted to healing.  
"Considering the circumstances, don't you two think it safer to find a temporary place to stay?"  
She was correct and he looked down at the woman he was comforting, and then back at the woman now comforting him and nodded.

* * *

Yoruichi had heard of the incident from the all-knowing Byakuya, whose little sister immediately rushed to the hospital to check on 'Ukitake-sama.' Unfortunately at the mention of Ukitake's name Kuukaku decided she wouldn't be paying a visit to their friend Shunsui. Yoruichi disagreed.  
"You're coming."

Yoruichi grunted as she tugged on her friend's arm. Kuukaku hardly had to exert force to say seated despite the effort Yoruichi was putting forward.  
"Didn't I tell ya no?" She said reclaiming her limb, "I have stuff ta do"  
Yoruichi crossed her arms over her chest, knowing very well that Kuukaku had absolutely nothing to do and that she only ever used the large oak desk that she now sat at when she was avoiding something or someone. She knew this because that desk had once belonged to the woman's older brother and it was a space of calm, an area frozen in time among the chaos that was her penthouse.

"Kuukaku if this has to do with Kaien?"  
Kuukaku's fist clenched and she muttered, "Watch it, Yoruichi."  
Yoruichi continued unfettered by Kuukaku's growing rage, walking on eggshells if you will. "It wasn't Ukitake's fault, okay?"  
"Yoruichi!" She growled warningly.  
"Not Rukia's either and-"  
Kuukaku's hands hit the desk with a loud thumping noise that halted her sentence, the woman turned to her with anger filled eyes, "Shut the hell up would ya! I don't care if it was anyone's fault, I just want you to leave!"  
Yoruichi didn't flinch at her friend's sudden outburst and Kuukaku sat down, slightly tense. Turning to leave, Yoruichi paused in the doorway and looked back, "How long is it gonna take Kuukaku?"

The woman sneered and grabbed her pen from a drawer.

"Hell if I know."

Yoruichi sighed and shut the door not wanting to dwell on the how frustrating Kuukaku could be. So troublesome. She passed Ganju all but splayed across the couch snoring loudly to some game show in another language flashing across the television screen.  
Glancing at her wrist she realized she wasn't wearing a watch and pulled out her cell phone to retrieve the time. When she saw it she could only think in relation to how long it'd be until Soi Fong returned.

She decided leaving would be for the best; grabbing a dvd (presumably Ganju's porn) from the nearby table, she chucked it at the sleeping man and hit him square between the eyes.  
He reacted instantly, yelling indecencies, "Grah, bitch why're ya throwing things"  
He said rubbing his skull and wiping a string of drool from his recently awoken mouth. "Shut it, your head's so hard I could bust it if I tried! I need to borrow your bike."  
He quirked the eyebrow that had been shaved in two places and queried in his deep voice, "Mind telling me why I should even consider it?"

Yoruichi grinned maliciously, "Because your sister taught you respect."  
This meant "Don't make me get Kuukaku on your sorry ass." It was a bluff since in her current state, Kuukaku probably wouldn't do anything to help her, but just saying such a thing gave an instant effect.

He grumbled and grabbed a set of keys from his pocket, tossing them to her a bit harder than he had to, the metal hurt slightly when it struck her palm.  
"It's parked in the VIP garage, don't mess it up."

She smirked patronizingly and strode out the door.

The elevator went too slow for her and halfway down the doors opened to let in a woman.  
She entered soundlessly and Yoruichi watched her for a few seconds curiously. She had dark skin, maybe a shade darker than the Shihouin woman's own, and a mop of slightly unruly bright blonde hair. A flipped up collar covered from her nose down from the angle Yoruichi saw her and her eyes were a forest green, reflecting the illuminated buttons on the elevator wall. Her belly shirt revealed quite a bit of a well shaped midriff which was odd for winter and for a few minutes, Yoruichi considered a friendly conversation, but the look on the woman's eyes told her it would be an annoyance.

The elevator reached the bottom level and both women exited. The blonde nodded solemnly and went in the opposite direction.

Yoruichi watched her vanish getting the feeling they'd see each other again.  
She walked towards the large glass door, her feet never shuffled when she walked, and she looked down at her shoes. Examining the ornate marble, the Shiba family spared no expense for decorating.

She spun the keys on her finger and glanced up at the ceiling; her met eyes with the lights. She glanced at her cell phone as she passed through the glass doors. She'd be back soon.


	17. Protective Detail

_Next chappie, quicker than usual, thanks Suzumebuchi for being so...supportive?_

* * *

Soi Fong was irritated. Someone (her bets were on Hitsugaya) had ordered her a bodyguard. Hisagi Shuuhei stood in her doorway. She'd had the meeting with the head monks and was disappointed but not surprised with their ignorance; some wise men they were. She apparently had two choices: Go through with the duties of her family, mainly an arranged marriage; or leave.

Guess which she chose.

This meeting hadn't improved her mood much and now this man was watching as she packed; she doubted someone trying to kill her was hiding in her suitcase.  
She did not need an escort.  
She had Tatsuki and nearly seventeen years of martial arts training. If that couldn't take care of it the man at her door probably didn't have a chance in hell. She couldn't even escape these things in another country.  
Shoving a pair of pants into the suitcase she said, "Exactly why are you here again?"  
He took one hand out of his baggy jeans and ran it over his spiky hair. He was hard to read.  
"I told you, Kyouraku was hurt."  
Soi looked at him as if waiting for more. When he stopped speaking she said, "So you've just decided to spontaneously come and work for me?"  
Shuuhei gave a small laugh, "Oh, Hitsugaya just wanted to-"  
"Protect his investment?"  
Tatsuki walked passed him and into the room.  
She guessed right; it was Hitsugaya, that short tempered squirt, she laughed bitterly, "Great I'm an investment." She muttered with more than a little sarcasm.  
Tatsuki smiled and leaned over, mock whispering, "I'd buy you."  
Soi let a smile crackle on her face before letting it fizzle into an indifferent grimace.  
"Why are you both here? The plane doesn't leave till tonight." Soi cringed at the thought of another plane ride. Two spiky black-haired heads swiveled to look at her both shrugging in unison.  
How comical.

* * *

Yoruichi was in her own predicament. She'd gone to visit Shunsui whom had looked terrible. He hadn't woken up yet, and the taste of tenseness and worry could be felt around the ward.

Ukitake and Nanao were staying with Urahara at Unohana's request. Originally the doctor's request was to have them stay with her, but as she wasn't even supposed to be there it seemed unfair to Soi to open her doors to any and everyone who needed a roof.  
Despite trying to stay here alone, Hitsugaya had dispatched Tousen to act as a guard. Luckily the man didn't require much attention being the quiet type.  
He had brought a CD or book on tape, or whatever it was, so all she really had to do was pretend she'd bought Soi a very lifelike statue.  
After taking a shower, noting for no reason that Soi had expensive shampoo, she redressed and rummaged through Soi's CD collection until a thunderstorm started outside her door. 

A constant loud banging was followed by a loud thump, some yelling and a crash.  
Yoruichi jumped as the door was banged in. Kuukaku stood in the doorway, looking at the door she had just kicked in.  
She was breathing heavily, as if she had just ran up the stairs. Behind her stood the probable cause of this anxiety. Rangiku waving happily. Yoruichi couldn't contain the instantaneous laughter that erupted from her throat. Hitsugaya had told Matsumoto to guard Kuukaku? What the hell was that twerp thinking?  
After a few seconds of hurried thinking, she found it made sense; out of the four band members (whom it seemed where getting guards), Kuukaku needed the least protection. Not that Rangiku could provide any less protection, Yoruichi had seen her kick some serious ass, but Tousen definitely won in a scary contest.  
Her anger seeped into the air and she all but flew over to Yoruichi, grabbing the woman by the collar and nearly lifting her into the air. "What have you got too do with this?"  
Yoruichi smiled anxiously, "Matsumoto didn't tell you?"  
She gave a pleading look over her attackers shoulder at a smiling Rangiku. The busty woman simply said, "I wanted to play a guessing game, but Kaku-chan wouldn't go along with it." 

Gold eyes shifted back to angry relaxed grey ones. Yoruichi chuckled, "Kaku-chan?"  
Yoruichi was quickly tossed onto the couch, her leg hurt when she landed, she kept forgetting her recently healed legs.  
Kuukaku clenched her fist and Yoruichi thought about taking cover.  
"Someone tell me what's going on?"  
The calmness in her voice was unsettling, as if she was counting down to the explosion.  
Tousen stepped up to the plate. 

"Mister Hitsugaya asked us to look after you guys."  
Kuukaku spun around and stared at the rather imposing man.  
"I don't need any protection from her." The Shiba daughter half-yelled pointing at Rangiku who gave an exaggerated and fake hurt look. Tousen's voice was low and calm, "It's for your safety."  
Lucky for all of them in the room Kuukaku had regained her calm.  
"Right, well if you leave now I'll pay you more than Hitsugaya is."  
Tousen peeked over the top of his dark shade, then hid his cloudy eyes once again. "I'm sorry I have my orders."  
As he finished this dramatic sentence, Rangiku grabbed him by the front of his shit and began to forcefully drag him out the door. "No that'll be fine, you guys have each other and I wouldn't mind stopping by that shop I saw on the way over. "  
She said this all very fast and Tousen all but fell his way out of the apartment. The second they left Kuukaku jumped over a side table to lock the door. There was some knocking and the sound of Matsumoto's voice then silence. Both women sighed in relief. "Looks like I sleeping here tonight."  
Kuukaku said stretching her arms with a yawn, "Soi got any alcohol?"  
It proceeded like this. In their comfortable way of going about business as Kuukaku found Soi's stash of particularly hard liquor; the girl had quite the constitution when it came to alcohol.  
Kuukaku was apparently impressed by the collection while Yoruichi didn't really care as long as it didn't knock her out. Of the two of them, her tolerance level was definitely on the bottom. 

Kuukaku, being the responsible person she could sometimes be, picked out something that wouldn't knock the dark-skinned woman off her feet.  
It didn't make much difference.  
Yoruichi was slurring within a few shots and Kuukaku was attempting not to do anything stupid.  
"Ha come on don't be so stiff take it off."  
She tried to keep a firm grasp on the bottom of her dark red shirt. Yoruichi got this way sometimes when she drank and Kuukaku was far too used to it to fall for her tricks and attempts at intoxicated seduction.  
She pulled the woman's chocolate hands off of her shirt and gave her a light push. The Shihouin smiled goofily, but Kuukaku just stood up. "You should go get to sleep."  
Hands on her belt, back pockets, ass.  
For a second her head spun, she turned around to glance at the woman now virtually molesting her.  
They looked at each other like that for a few seconds before Yoruichi started kissing her neck.  
That little shoulder angel made her reel backwards.  
Yoruichi lost balance and fell forward landing on all fours, she spilled her friends glass and swore loudly. 

"Stop it." 

The smell of alcohol permeated the air even further as it sunk into the carpet, Soi was gonna be mad. Yoruichi crawled forward a bit, then got back to her feet. "Why?"  
For a few seconds she wondered if this was how Soi felt when Yoruichi came onto her.  
"Because we're in Soi's house and your drunk of yer ass." 

"Soi doesn't care." 

"I beg to differ." 

Yoruichi smiled as she grabbed Kuukaku's shoulders, "Soi Fong hates me."  
It was a surprise to hear that. Ever since her return, Yoruichi had focused on the fact that in her mind, nothing had changed. All of her belongings would still be where she left them, all of her fans would still love her, and her relationship with Soi would still be intact. Yoruichi seemed to be sobering up if only a bit. "She punched me when she saw me, she couldn't even bare for me to touch her, she'd rather go to a different country and visit her family than sleep in the same place."  
There was definitely hurt on Yoruichi's face as she came to terms with all of the words coming out of her mouth. Her grip on Kuukaku, who was listening to all this with a look of unbiased wisdom on her face, seemed to tighten. As much as the taller woman wanted to comfort her friend, she new it was better to get out all the poison instead of ignoring it. "You never said goodbye, what did you expect."  
Yoruichi looked at her feet, her eyes clearer than they were even during a normal day, she looked back up at her friend and relinquished the hold on her shoulders.  
"Goodbye means I'm not coming back."  



	18. Home Coming

_I attribute my lateness to having to stay awake all night writing a paper on sleep. Ironic eh?_

* * *

The plane ride had been arduous, with arguments springing forth between Shuuhei and Tatsuki every now and again. A storm or some kind of scare had delayed their flight; she didn't remember which, just that the timing saved her from eating airplane food. The three had caught a meal at a nearby restaurant, Hisagi having kindly picked up the bill.

Her mood had worsened since touch down as she had managed to fall asleep among her traveling companions bickering and instead of doing the sensible thing and waking her, Shuuhei decided to carry her off of the plane. A feat, he described, as insanely easy due to her weight or lack thereof. So now she was back in Tokyo, at three in the morning.

Soi might not have believed this had she not woken up in a car and seen the pictures taken with Tatsuki's cell phone of her "actually being cute." She had broken the phone.  
Due to the arrival time, she knew Yoruichi would not be picking her up (not that she had believed that Yoruichi specifically would come to get her), but she did not expect the scruffy smiling face of Urahara to be watching her from the drivers seat, especially when he should have been watching the road. Shuuhei had left his vehicle in the parking lot before coming to China, so only Tatsuki and Soi were forced to share the back seat of the posh black sports car that Yoruichi had driven before.

"Oi! Soi-chan nice to see you." Urahara said with a grin, almost driving through a stoplight. luckily he turned around in time to avoid causing a five car pile up.  
There were a few things she could complain about, but quite frankly, she was far to drained to kick a gift horse in the mouth. Not that she thought Urahara would kick her out of the car, but he was driving them through Tokyo at three in the morning, she could be grateful.  
In the passenger's seat a man with blonde hair styled into a severe spike over his eye looked quietly back at the two women with sad dark-rimmed eyes.

"New boy toy Urahara?"

Soi said sarcastically, the blonde man looked suddenly confused, Urahara smiled.  
"Silly Soi-chan, this is Izuru Kira, Hitsugaya gave him to me as a gift." The look on Kira's face was priceless as he learned he was an offering of some kind. Tatsuki ended the fun, "Don't worry they're kidding."

Urahara chuckled. "So, want to stop by anywhere? It's not too late to get ice cream or a movie."

"Take me home."

Soi said leaning against the window, the glass was cool against her cheek.

"We could just-"

"Home or you eat that dumb hat!"

Soi said with as much command as she could muster in this weakened state. Urahara muttered something about his hat not being dumb and asked Tatsuki where she would like to be dropped off. The woman muttered a half-awake statement about Orihime's house as her sentences began to fall into oblivion. Soi managed cognizance for a little while longer, listening to Urahara say thing to no one In particular and the radio, a familiar melody, the sound began to drift.

"I can't believe she fell asleep again."

Shuuhei stood by Urahara's car, staring at the two black-haired women that had fallen asleep all but on top of each other on the leather seat. Urahara stood by him, trying to solve this problem.  
He decided to lift the Chinese woman tenderly out of the vehicle among Hisagi's protests that it would anger her. Being as small as she was, an onlooker may have suspected them to be brother and sister or some such relation if not for the extreme difference in their appearances. Urahara pulled Soi onto his broad back, holding her in a piggyback position as he headed for the door. "Funny." Shuuhei said as he opened the door for them, "It's kinda hard to believe she could kick my ass." Urahara smiled, "Yeah sleep can do that."

Urahara hadn't counted on the flights of steps between the car and Soi's apartment but was only slightly winded when they reached the door marking their destination.  
Unfortunately the door was locked; Hisagi knocked but they received no answer. Urahara pondered his option: Yoruichi was probably still staying in the apartment but being a particularly lethargic rock would no doubt contain her to the bed even if they were to burn the whole damn building down.

"So what?" Shuuhei said turning from the door. "Do we pat her down for a key?" he gestured to

the sleeping girl.  
In a mystic fashion a door down the hall opened and out came a dark haired woman who Urahara recognized.

"Unohana ?"

The woman looked down the hall to see them as did a silver-haired head that popped out from within the room. "Hello Urahara, what brings you here?"  
The blonde man hitched Soi up on his back to reveal she was there. Isane looked surprise at the return of her friend. "O-oh is it locked? I think Kiyone keeps a key in-"  
Isane motioned to go back into the room but Unohana waved it off. "Don't worry Isane."  
She said in her comforting voice, the woman seemed to levitate down the hall and wiggled the knob only a little before the door swung open. Urahara shot Hisagi a look, the tattooed man gave a sheepishly apologetic smile.  
Looking inside Urahara was surprised to see that Yoruichi had kept a house clean for once in her life. Unohana motioned for them to enter. "There you go."  
They said their thank yous and offered gratitude by not questioning her reasons for being at Isane's residence at three in the A.M.  
Urahara carried the girl to the bedroom where he was not surprised to see Kuukaku and Yoruichi sprawled across the covers. The two shot glasses he had spotted in the kitchen was a telltale sign.

He placed the girl down between the pair in slight envy of her position. As he began his walk out he heard a familiarly gruff voice from the bed mutter, "Thanks for picking 'em up Kisuke."  
Kuukaku was apparently awake.

"Not a problem." He said taking a showy bow and switching off the light.

* * *

Sunlight reflected off the flowers at the bedside, Ukitake stared at the lifeless form of his friend in the hospital bed. His feet shifted and he walked towards the window staring out at the city streets. This was his fault, Shunsui had woken yet and the doctors were worried, he had taken a few hard blows to the head and-

"G'Morning starshine."

Ukitake spun around to see the man staring at the ceiling, his eyes tired but alive. Ukitake smiled broadly and hurried to the bed.

"Thank gods."

Kyouraku still had bruises and cut about his face. Ukitake headed for the door saying something about getting a nurse but his shirt was grabbed by one of Shunsui's big hands, the one with the clip on his finger.

" Slow down, Ukitake."

The silver-haired man gave him a curious look and waited for his explanation.

"After you get the nurse I want you to call Yama-ji."

Ukitake nodded, still overjoyed with his friends awakening.  
"And tell him one of the guys who out the beat down on me mentioned the name Ichimaru Gin."  
Ukitake's eyes darkened, he nodded again and made his second attempt at leaving. Once again he was stopped. "Oh and Ukitake."  
He paused and looked back from the doorway.

"Tell Nanao-chan I need a back rub."

Ukitake grinned, "We want to keep you conscious ya'know?"


	19. DEFuzed

_Oh no way did Ad just update?_

_Huzzah! I'm not dead! Well mostly not. (You can stop pacing now Edge)  
Wow, well sorry ..;;;;; But it's summer now, which means no school, which means more time, so let's see if can stop having sucky update time._

_There are many things I can use as excuses, but you're all prolly too anxious to read the chappie to listen.  
So here ya go_

* * *

Kuukaku was not usually one to wake early, but this particular morning, with Soi stealing most of the covers and Yoruichi stealing most of the bed she thought it best to slither out from the comfort of bed and get caffeine prepared for when the two wake. No doubt there would be fireworks; melodramatic, highly annoying fireworks. Without thinking she took out some bagels and loaded the toaster.  
Kuukaku sighed, searching for filters in desperate need of coffee. She wished they would get over it, that Soi could suck up her pride and Yoruichi could stop being oblivious. They were hopeless, she smiled, and it was nice to have them back.  
After a few minutes of musing over these simple things and preparing bagels Yoruichi exited the bedroom, still pulling a black sex pistols shirt over her head. Smelling the air she levitated classic cartoon style to the coffee. Pouring herself a mug she added more milk than there was coffee to begin with and gulped the liquid down. Only after the caffeine jolted through her cerebral cortex and the 'Night of the living dead' feel vanished she slurred a still groggy, "G' morning," before lifting a bagel from the table.  
"I'm surprised you're up first."

It really was rather impressive, usually the woman slept till evening, not to mention she should have a headache.  
"I had to get up early, wouldn't want Soi to kill me in my sleep."  
Yoruichi said through a mouthful of bagel as she went back for another mug of coffee.  
"I'm gonna go before she gets up, don't want her to get an ulcer on her first day back."  
Kuukaku didn't know that minutes before when Yoruichi had awoken to the welcome sight of Soi having returned she couldn't contain herself from stealing a kiss from the sleeping girl, for which she was still a bit skittish.

Taking another tear of the bagel she headed for the door.  
"Yoruichi, she'll want ta' see ya' when she wakes up."  
"Then tell her I'll be back later, we have to do the acoustic test for the gig tomorrow."  
Hitsugaya was rather angry that they were doing it so late due to Soi's absence. Luckily it was a venue Soul Cutter used to play regularly so everyone but Urahara had some idea what to expect.

Kuukaku sighed, "Bitch, leaving me to deal with her."

With a light cascading laugh and a mutter of, "Love ya' too," she slid out the door.  
With a lot of noise, Soi came hopping out the bedroom a few minutes later still attempting to get foot through a fresh pair of pants.  
Halfway to the apartment door she tripped on herself and had to all but somersault the rest of the way outside, grabbing her key as she went. It was all rather comical. With both woman gone Kuukaku sat down at the table and took a long drink of her coffee.

* * *

Yoruichi was on the second landing when Soi all but launched herself from the top of a flight of stairs and landed on her back. Getting the point, Yoruichi paused and waited for Soi to catch her breath, which, thanks to her dead sprint from the apartment, seemed to be missing. After a few seconds of silence filled with Soi's heavy breathing they just looked at each other. Soi Fong didn't exactly know why she had awoken feeling as if Yoruichi was leaving her but her intuition had apparently been right. Now though she didn't have a plan, something she was seldom without.

"Welcome back."  
Yoruichi finally said in the uncomfortable absence of words.  
For no reason at all a smile cracked across Soi's face, she'd been doing a lot of things for no reason lately.  
Yoruichi joined in her pointless smiling and eventually they were both chuckling nonsensically which loosened the mood enough for Soi to take a breath and begin talking directly.  
"I'm sorry for overreacting at Christmas; I shouldn't have left the country."  
Standing erect she went about it formally.

"And as nothing will get accomplished unless one of us-"  
Yoruichi shook her head, "its okay Soi, I'm sorry for the shit I did too."  
They sunk into an uncomfortable silence as before, both for some reason nervous to say the next words.  
Yoruichi spoke first.  
"I should get going?"  
"Are you going anywhere important?"  
The taller woman blinked a few times before thinking it over, "Not really."  
Where had she been planning to go anyway?  
Soi grabbed her wrist and started pulling her up the stairs, "Then you'll have to stay for breakfast."  
When they reached her door Soi slipped something into her hand.  
Yoruichi looked down at the key now resting on her palm.  
"So you won't have to seduce Kiyone every time you wanna get in." Soi muttered matter-of-factly turning the knob and pushing open her door. Yoruichi's closed her mouth as her jaw had gotten stuck agape and smiled as she slipped the key into her pocket.  
Tatsuki came knocking not to long after with Orihime looking almost a bit timid despite knowing Yoruichi and Kuukaku already and being a casual acquaintance of Soi she didn't look comfortable until Kuukaku said something about having to cook breakfast for five people.  
Orihime perked right up, rattling off recipe's whose ingredients made Soi, Yoruichi and Tatsuki cringe in unison.  
Soi Fong couldn't bring herself to ingest whatever it was Orihime made, she stuck to coffee, however it a seemed to taste good as both Kuukaku and Tatsuki gulped down their first dish and went back for seconds.

* * *

Hitsugaya leaned nonchalantly against the outer wall of the hospital, he was dressed almost in disguise if not for the expensive watch on his wrist he looked like any other street kid, a navy hoody with the hood pulled up and black jeans his hands stuffed in the pockets at he looked at his feet.  
He was waiting for Gin.  
The day before he had received a message, delivered by a silent blonde dark-skinned woman, her collar high enough to hide the bottom half of her face, who walked passed the guards as if she was invisible and set the letter in his hand without a word.  
In Gin's scrawlish handwriting he was told about Hinamori, and how she was safe, and if Hitsugaya wanted proof, he'd come and visit them today at the hospital. The message was ominous but he had checked with the clerk and no one with her name had been admitted, so he guessed Gin meant her no harm.  
He had been waiting there for awhile, his breath crystallizing in the air as he scanned the street, watching ambulances rush in and out and a rainbow of unfortunate malady ridden citizens doing the same.  
When the black car pulled up he pushed off the wall and waited. The tinted passenger's window rolled down to reveal Gin's grinning face, a cigarette clamped between his curled lips.  
The man blew the smoke out the window before opening the door and stepping out, a mocking shiver before he spoke. "Chilly eh Shiro-bozu?"  
Hitsugaya sneered, "It's Hitsugaya-san, where is she?"  
"You sure get to the point."  
Gin flicked his cigarette to the ground where a passerby put it out inadvertently with their shoe as he tapped on the back window and that too rolled down.  
Hinamori's smiling face was on the other side, "Hi Shiro-chan."  
Hitsugaya was surprised, if Ichimaru was simply showing off Hinamori he had to have a confidence that she wouldn't run or anything of the sort.  
"H-Hinamori, you okay?"  
Despite his cool demeanor he couldn't keep the relief from his voice.  
"Of course."  
She laughed a little, real light.  
The tinted window rolled back up, covering Hinamori's suddenly surprised face, Hitsugaya all but leapt across the sidewalk, about to break the window, if Ichimaru hadn't caught him with his forearm across the boys chest and shoved him back.  
"See, she's just fine so no need to get all riled up right?"  
Hitsugaya gritted his teeth, ready to throw a punch at the cocky man; instead he felt someone's hand settled warningly on his shoulder. His head whipped around to find Ukitake towering over him, the man's white hair almost blending with the color of the sky.  
His smile was warm and good-natured, Toushiro knew Ukitake must want to sock him just as bad, after what happened to Shunsui, but he smiled despite it, his firm hand holding the boy back.  
"Hello Shiro-kun, I have a gift for you and-….Oh hello Ichimaru."  
He slapped another hand on the man's shoulder before coughing hoarsely; Gin gave a distasteful look before pulling away and opening the passenger's door. "Talk soon Shiro-bozu."  
As the car sped off Hitsugaya ripped his shoulder from Ukitake's grip, downright angry.  
"What the hell do you think you're doing!?"  
Juushiro's eyes were serious, "This isn't the time or the place, Hitsugaya."  
There was no way to argue that, the boy shoved his hands back in his pockets and stalked off, determined and angry, he'd have to get back, Soul Cutter had to practice. 


	20. Should've Held Tighter

_Kind of a filler chapter, net chappies the gig. My stupid updating problems ..;;;;_

* * *

The practice had gone almost scarily well, and besides Urahara and some of the sound crew they were working with earning a few drumstick shaped bruises from Kuukaku, the performance was enviable. Hitsugaya had stood around looking pissed for one reason or another and Ukitake, who he'd brought with him, was happily clapping and complimenting them.  
The sound crew consisted mainly of a blonde man with an odd haircut and a tongue piercing, some extremely violent pig-tailed and somewhat crass pigtailed girl, a tall silver haired teenager and some girl in a sailor uniform who read more risqué manga than setting up equipment.  
Soi hadn't really paid attention to any of them; she was too busy listening to Yoruichi sing. She wondered why she had been the lead vocalist for Soul Cutter in the first place with Yoruichi's rich honey voice being as perfect as it was.  
It kind of pissed her off.  
Pushing through one of the heavy back alley doors she was pulling out an unopened pack of cigarettes when she heard the voices bouncing around the brick walls. One was Matsumoto she knew that immediately but the other took a direct line of sight to confirm. Izuru was taking what looked like the brunt of a rough conversation from the busty woman. Leaning against the wall she was more going unnoticed than eavesdropping.  
As she lit up her cigarette Matsumoto's voice suddenly rose an octave and nearly doubled in volume.

"Tell me where Gin is!"  
Urahara had mentioned something about Gin and Rangiku having a thing in the past. He wouldn't explain what kind of thing this was and she had no reason to delve into others interpersonal relationships, but she had to admit she was curious. At first Soi thought Ichimaru was just some punk that had targeted her for a mugging and by coincidence was involved in other things. Apparently however, he had previous connections with the entire group and was, by reputation, not such a bad guy.  
She hadn't known that Izuru had any connections with him.  
As he began to answer, Soi Fong felt like she had been hit in the back of the head with a log or something; it was just Yoruichi.  
"There you are Soi. "  
She had slinked out from the heavy double doors and jumped Soi Fong, hugging her over the shoulders as if she was trying to attract the attention of the two arguing before them.  
And, lo and behold, she had.  
Both of them stopped in their tracks and look over at them as if embarrassed to be having this argument, or maybe embarrassed to be caught together in a dark alley, imagining what thoughts the two women turned witnesses were conjuring.  
Yoruichi jumped right into getting answers. "Oh Rangiku! Not molesting Kira are ya'?"  
Rangiku caught right on hugging Kira straight away, his face dangerously close to her cleavage in a way that made him blush, "The question is what you are doing in a dark alley with Miss Soi Fong, hm?"

With a smile she simply shrugged off the question instead of showing anymore affection towards the shorter girl, which surprised her on some level, it didn't seem very Yoruichi-ish.  
Matsumoto just grinned and began dragging the blonde man with her back into the club.  
"Well we'll be going, I'm sure you two can take care of yourselves."  
They disappeared behind the door and Yoruichi grabbed a cigarette.  
"Are you doing anything for your birthday?"  
Soi muttered as she exhaled a cloud of smoke. Her body hadn't entirely adjusted to smoking yet so she had to muffle a cough, she hadn't done it too often but found it relieved band and Yoruichi related stress.

"Nah," Was the response as the responder stated wrestling with her lighter, for some reason she couldn't get a spark, Soi wanted to mention that smoking would mess with her vocals, "The entire world celebrates my birthday, I even get fireworks."  
She had heard that before, when she had first been told that the older woman's birthday was the first day of the year. It was true, everyone celebrated her birthday.  
"I think Kuukaku's throwing me a party though, using one of the ballrooms in her hotel."  
Of course Kuukaku threw parties whenever she wanted, which was often, simply because she had the space and the money.  
"What do you want for your birthday?"  
Yoruichi laughed lightly having finally lit her cigarette.  
For a minute those gold eyes scanned her up and down and she felt hot, her heart beat sped up in a clichéd way that she'd only felt before Yoruichi's departure and she wondered if she was receiving some kind of telekinetic lust from the woman watching her. That within itself was odd, despite the time to time physical contact there hadn't been any taste of sexual intentions since the little bit at Christmas.  
"Surprise me."  
It was so utterly suggestive that Soi had to blush and push off the wall to hide it.  
"Sure."  
Surprise her? Right.  
Opening the door she left, Yoruichi smirking.

The club they were playing in was rather popular, and considering Hitsugaya had advertised the return of Soul Cutter there was no doubt that the place would be packed. One-oh had also enlisted the members of Hollow to play, so Byakuya was hanging around, which of course meant Rukia was there. This led to Ichigo, Renji, Orihime, and Tatsuki all mulling around as they prepared for there turn on sound-check. Ishida wasn't present, but Soi remembered him saying something about being the previous something or other for Hollow and figured that was the reason.

Kuukaku was yelling at Ganju over something and a timid looking almost androgynous black haired man was cowering behind him, fast food bags in his grip.  
There were plans for dinner which would probably be compromised to lower bills and avoid alcohol poisoning.  
As she watched the members of Hollow setting up, her focus on the bright red ponytail of Renji as he messed with his drum set and Ichigo with his spiky orange head and perpetual scowl attempting to tune his guitar. They were teenagers to her perceived adult.  
"Scoping out the competition?"  
Urahara stood next to her as if he had just appeared, she didn't jump--by now she was used to mysterious people and their ability to teleport. She shook her head crossing her arms over her chest, "Just bored."

Urahara smiled and leaned back against the wall revealing his eyes from under his hat.  
"Ichigo's pretty good on guitar, I taught him, Orihime's vocals are a bit shaky, her voice is a lot higher than Yoruichi or yours."  
He shifted his eyes from the teenage girl to Soi as if expecting some violent reaction to his mentioning her singing. None came. "I'm sure Byakuya is their driving force, though I don't know why they wouldn't have him sing." Urahara was shocked, as if an actual conversation was impossible, he didn't show it.

"He has a nice voice but not as much range as you'd think."  
Soi nodded, this was her attempt at being friendly.  
"So you're letting Yoruichi live with you?"  
"Figured I'd get her out of your hair."  
Urahara pulled his hat off and scratched his sandy blonde head.  
"I've been meaning to talk to you actually."  
Soi Fong simply waited as Urahara went about readjusting his cap and looking at her.  
"I owe you an apology, Yoruichi never would have left if I hadn't asked her to."  
There was anger but it was dull, she had known that by now, guessed that Urahara had something to do with the entire thing. "I'll accept your apology."  
Stoic, she pushed off the wall and headed to the stage. She wanted to listen to Hollow.

Soi was outside her apartment building. The group had gone off for dinner and drinks, but for some reason she didn't want to partake in the merriment, or maybe she didn't trust herself to get drunk.

She had slipped off without notice, which meant she didn't have Shuuhei trailing after her like a lost guard puppy. She readjusted her guitar case over her shoulder; she had bought a new guitar when Yoruichi came back, working at the 11th district she got a discount on equipment. It needed to be broken in, but it was a good guitar, colored yellow and black.  
Fumbling with the door handle the case almost slipped off her shoulder, but was caught by someone. She turned around to profess some kind of thanks but was frozen in her tracks when she caught sight of who had helped her. Ichimaru Gin held the case strap smiling. "Hiya Soi Fong."  
It was a bit chilling.  
She remembered Rangiku trying to shake Izuru down for information on the silver-haired man's whereabouts and the conversation about his reputation.  
"What are you doing here?"  
Gin played hurt. "My my, pushy."  
It was tense as if any second there would be some kind of explosion. They were frozen there, Soi not chancing a move, though she could probably give a nice enough leg sweep to get inside and lock the door.

"I'm jus' here to wish ya' good luck tomorrow."  
He sounded threatening, ominous, in the most friendly way possible.  
"That supposed to mean something?"  
This time he looked surprised, his eyes slit the whole way through, "I'm not allowed ta' drop by an' wish the best?"

They were talking in questions.

"Okay then, thank you for your kindness."  
She said sounding like a recording and hoping he would leave. Then something happened to his face. The first real emotion that it seemed he had felt that entire night. Sadness or regret.  
"Can I ask ya' 'ta tell Rangiku sorry for me?"  
She was a bit taken aback and suddenly felt as if there was some truth to the story about his reputation as a not so bad guy. Not able to find her bearings at this unexpected deluge of misplaced emotion all she could do was mutter, "Y-yeah, I'll make sure she knows." He nodded and walked away, seeming to disappear into the night despite his light skin and hair.  
Hurrying up the flights of stairs she shut the door behind her and dug for her cell phone in her pockets, clicking through her registry, she dialed Toushiro.


	21. ChainLinkLights

_Not too long for the update and it's a pretty long chapter only cause I didn't wanna split up the gig. Italics are Soi's memories._

_Anyway I hope you like it _

* * *

It was a bad idea from the start. 

Now Soi had no idea why she was rifling among the racks of clothing alongside the energetic bouncing Orihime and Tatsuki who was secretly indulging in shopping, a so called girl activity.

She had woken up that morning to realize that she had absolutely nothing to wear to the performance tonight which, Urahara had mentioned was a problem.

Not wanting to enlist Yoruichi to assist her in such a task, and knowing the woman would probably take advantage of the situation by slipping her into something unnecessarily risqué without Soi knowing otherwise. Orihime's taste was in skirts and such and Soi didn't like her legs so she didn't provide much guidance, Tatsuki however had a bit more of an idea what was going on.

"Does it fit?"

Tatsuki's voice floated over the space above the door.

It was difficult to find things in her size without going into the kid's section which was why most of her tee-shirts looked about two sizes to big. This shirt on the other hand, some pseudo casual punk compilation was fitting her rather nicely and she wasn't particularly against purchasing it.

"Yeah."

There was something of a shocked silence. Orihime had gone out to gather more clothes, a futile effort.

"You going to Kuukaku's New Year's thing."

She didn't exactly know why Tatsuki insisted on carrying on conversation while she was getting stuck in the process of undressing.

"Don't know."

The event that was planned as Yoruichi's birthday party had apparently just been turned into a New Year's event due to what seemed to be a conflict between her and Kuukaku. Soi had asked about it persistently when she had returned home but all she had heard of it was the yelling match the two women had outside her apartment building.

"_You're sure that's all he said?"_

_Rangiku was pacing back and forth with her hand on her chin, her breasts only slightly contained by the small tee-shirt she had rushed over in. _

_The woman had over stayed her welcome by close to an hour, an hour she had spent listening to Soi repeat the minute long encounter she'd had with Gin. _

"_Yeah that's it Matsumoto."_

_Sighing the woman adjusted that tight tee-shirt and went for her jacket which had been messily thrown over the arm of her couch. She slipped her arms into the garment very slowly, Soi mentally rolled her eyes, there were no men about to impress yet she continued to act sensual. "I'm sure Toushiro's been looking for me so I better go." She paused while straightening out her collar, "Unless you'd like me to sleep over Soi-chan." _

_Oh so she herself was playing the guy._

"_No, have a nice night." She muttered coldly and watched Rangiku slip out the door with a wave. Only minutes later there was the sound of a car door shutting, not slamming but not a gentle push closed either. This was followed almost immediately by a lot of indecipherable yelling ending in a very clear. _

"_Well fuck you, Yoruichi."_

_Then Rangiku's voice, "Kuukaku, stop it!"_

_Sprinting to her window she peered down at the street and the awaiting scene. Matsumoto, whom Soi had a gratuitous view of from this angle, was barely holding an angry Kuukaku, whose shirt she was also inadvertently staring down, back while Yoruichi seemed to be nurturing a hurt shoulder. Cool as ice Yoruichi (wearing a turtle neck and not providing a nice view much to Soi's relief) stood straight and looked Matsumoto in the eye, the busty blonde nodded and released Kuukaku. The angry woman charged at her like a bulldozer but Yoruichi was much quicker and avoided what probably would've been a few broken teeth. Since Soi couldn't see much facial expression from her angle of observation she could only guess Kuukaku's face as she paused before heading back to her car, saying something about not having any time to deal with fuckers. _

_There were thanks shared between Yoruichi and Matsumoto as Kuukaku sped off in a most likely randomized general direction. Not wanting to appear as if she was spying Soi sauntered back to her couch and fell back onto it. Her stomach growled, she hadn't gone out with the group for dinner and didn't bother to make anything for herself when she'd gotten home. _

_A few minutes later the door swung open and something landed on her stomach. Looking up she found a carry-out bag. _

"_Someone your size starves a lot faster if they don't feed themselves ya'know."_

_She couldn't suppress a smile, Yoruichi sat down on the couches arm, grabbing the remote, which she had apparently found. "What would you do without me?" _

"_I'd starve apparently." _

_Soi dug into the bag, Western Cajun, it smelled good._

_She paused before eating and looked up at Yoruichi who hadn't yet turned on the TV._

"_Your shoulder okay?"_

_Yoruichi's eyes seemed to go from Soi to her shoulder to the ground. "Ya' saw that huh?"_

_The smaller woman shifted herself until she was sitting up, "More heard it but yeah."_

_Smiling the Shihouin rotated her arm slowly followed by cracking her neck. "I think I'm fine."_

_Not convinced Soi stood up and sternly took her shoulder, "Let me see."_

_Undoing the top three buttons on her shirt Yoruichi slipped the color down passed her shoulder and pulled her ponytail out of the way. _

_Suddenly Soi wondered why she'd suggested this; she could smell Yoruichi's shampoo and saw the spread out design of her black butterfly tattoo. It took a good portion of her will not to trace the outline. _

_Setting her mouth into a grim line she looked all she could without using her hands until she realized she needed to pull the collar down a bit, which she did tentatively and saw the purplish bruise that was spread out just underneath the butterfly pattern. _

"_No blood, it'll be sore, you should probably ice it."_

_Pulling her shirt back up, she stretched the limb again before getting up and heading towards the refrigerator. Soi Fong realized her hands were shaking. _

* * *

With outfits chosen and what little food their nervous digestive tracks could manage the band and a group of friends were all in Soi Fong's house. 

She doesn't know who this happen as she never remembered volunteering her apartment as a meeting place but lo' and behold ,the whole group, laughing, talking and drinking all strewn about her apartment. She was just lucky it was decently sized, which was thanks to the past Yoruichi and her money.

Not being able to stomach anything substantial and not wanting to risk alcohol just yet she was sipping ice tea until Yoruichi picked her up all but by the back of the neck, tore the pack of cigarettes from her pants pocket and threw into that classy black sports car.

That was about two hours ago and now it was almost starting time for them.

Hollow was just finishing up and they had done rather well but it was obvious who the crowd had come too see. As much as that had probably pissed off the Hollow members, except Orihime who was happily oblivious as she sang her heart out, Soi wondered if it would be better, less pressure.

Kuukaku had still been fuming and taking a lot of her aggression out on Urahara, whom had acquired a few more of those drumstick shaped bruises. Luckily most everyone had mellowed out or at least gotten so amped that it didn't matter either way if they wanted to kill each other or not.

As Soi tuned her guitar for what must've been the twentieth time she peeked out into the crowd from her place backstage, the first thing she saw made her sick.

Ichimaru Gin.

There he was in the front, grinning and watching Hollow perform, Byakuya must've noticed it, in fact she was probably the only one who hadn't realized he was there, which left the question of why none of they're so called bodyguards had so much as questioned his presence. Then Hollow finished up, her stomach lurched. There was the quick introduction which Ichigo performed and there was a cheer from the crowd. She thought she could hear Kiyone even among all those voices.

Swallowing hard she looked over to Yoruichi who was smiling and talking with Rangiku, looking like the most confidence person in the world. Figures.

"Don't worry Soi-chan."

The nervousness didn't help the heart-attack level of surprise she felt at those words, her head snapped up to see Urahara smiling down at her.

"I'm not."

"Which is why you're shaking?"

Looking away from him she felt anger in her throat but it didn't seem fair for Urahara to take the heat from both her and Kuukaku so she just gripped the neck of her guitar a bit.

"And _you're_ not nervous?"

"It hasn't been years since I did this."

This was true, plus she was taking on Urahara's role of guitarist in the band, if anyone knew what she was dealing with it'd be him. Soi watched them switch out the drum set in fast-forward.

Hollow walked back passed her and the lights seemed to get brighter.

Urahara put a hand on her shoulder and muttered into her ear, "Show time."

She felt herself being pushed and then she was stumbling out onto the space in front of all those people.

Even when she wanted to yell back at Urahara, swear at him for doing that she couldn't. Instead she was caught in the lights and the sudden cheers. That seemed to be another product of being off the circuit for so long, she was the proof that Soul Cutter, though short one Byakuya, was back.

There was another hand on her shoulder, this one not as heavy as Urahara's; Yoruichi was standing next to her holding the microphone, another louder yell of happy from the crowd. Then Urahara took his place followed by Kuukaku sitting down behind the drum set, each received there own respective greeting cheer though neither seemed as booming as the one they'd received when Yoruichi and Soi Fong had been seen on stage for the first time in so long.

Apparently liking the attention, no big surprise there, Yoruichi grinned and said, "So what do you think Soi Fong? You like being back?"

The words echoed through the speakers, there was another roar; Soi Fong cursed the vocalist's misguided showboating. The microphone was in front of her mouth, was she supposed to say something witty?

Instead something bitter came out, "Maybe I should be asking you that. What's it like coming back to Tokyo?"

That was a bit harsh and the crowd must've sensed the venom.

Yoruichi didn't even flinch, "Much better than anywhere else, after all you're here."

No sarcasm, it caught her off-guard, more so than she'd admit.

She heard Urahara start off, belting out a few chords, Kuukaku joined in, she followed the lead and the lights got brighter as Yoruichi's voice filled the space.

* * *

They're performance had gone to eleven forty-five and despite the countdown that would soon be taking place most of them hung around in an attempt to get autographs. As Soi stepped backstage she realized how much adrenaline had been dumped into her blood-stream. 

She needed a cigarette.

As she patted herself down she realized she had given them to Yoruichi earlier and looked behind her only to realize the woman she was searching for was escaping through the door in front of her.

"Hey Yoru-."

Too late. The heavy door closed. "Dammit."

Part of her knew it would be risky to follow her, and the other part wanted to pretend she didn't know the risks because she really needed a cigarette.

So she pulled open the door and started up a flight of stairs, the adrenaline made her feel like she was floating. Pushing through another door she was met by the sight of the Tokyo lights.

There were no stars in this city, but the lights were just a beautiful, probably more of an acquired taste.

Yoruichi leaned against one of the chain link fences that marked the edge of the building, the lights illuminating a cloud of smoke that Yoruichi exhaled as she stepped onto the rooftop. Gold eyes turned, surprised but not displeased to see her there. Despite not having long legs she strode over in what seemed a minimal number of steps and let her eyes indicate the cigarette Yoruichi was smoking.

Getting the point she pulled a pack of cigs from her pocket and handed her one. Setting it between her lips Soi realized she didn't have a lighter, Yoruichi was way ahead of her as she felt the warmth by her chin that indicated her cigarette had been lit.

Inhaling she let the nicotine do what it could against her erratic nerves. Looking out on the city, it was something that would've made her angry, it didn't, in fact she wanted time to stop.

"Good job."

Silence broken, time restarted.

"Thanks, think I was as good as Urahara?"

"Better."

"Better than you?"

She simply chuckled, but what did she expect? At least that meant it was possible, though she doubted Yoruichi felt threatened.

"It's almost tomorrow."

"Right early happy birthday."

She gave a short almost bitter laugh, "Getting old is nothing to celebrate. Nice shot at me on stage by the way." Soi Fong almost felt bad for that though she had no idea why.

"You deserved it."

Yoruichi's eyes got distant as she stared back out at the streets, cars passed by, people she'd never meet, so much life concentrated in one place. "How much longer will it take?"

"Pft, fuck if I know, you're the one that left."

"How many times do I have to apologize?"

The taller woman's voice seemed to rise in volume.

"More than you are obviously!"

Now her voice was going up and it was going to become a fight soon. She knew how it worked, very little could shake Yoruichi into offensive violence, she would exhibit and she would defend, but she very rarely attacked simply out of anger. So she thought there was a slim possibility that a fist would come flying through the air and return the bruises she sustained for and from Soi.

Instead her neck was cold.

This was because she had been pressed up against the fence. Soon however this minor discomfort of skin temperature was forgotten when she realized Yoruichi's tongue was in her mouth. The woman was pressed as close to her as she could possibly be without compromising the kiss due to their height difference. Not too difficult with how practiced Yoruichi was at it, especially since Soi had grown since the last time she'd done this.

She was angry, not angry because she was being kissed by Yoruichi, more because this was being done without her permission in a way in which she was dominated. So she clenched a fist and pounded it hard against the taller woman's injured shoulder. Yoruichi made a small noise and winced; it had hurt her, so she did it again and realized she was probably hitting the butterfly tattoo as well. At this point however her head had started swimming because Yoruichi's hands were under her shirt and instead of once again slamming her fist into that butterfly tattoo she clutched the shirt's material and despite all of her self promises to never fall back into Yoruichi again, she kissed her back in front of all of Tokyo's lights.

And liked it.

"Hey guys I-!"

Shit.

Yoruichi disengaged and spun in a circle to see Rukia gaping at the two of them, Soi had to thread her fingers through the small diamond holes in the fence to keep her balance. Rukia blushed, "Sorry."

Yoruichi didn't miss a beat, as always, "What's wrong?"

"It's Kuukaku and Nii-sama, they're fighting."

That seemed a bit odd, though irritable as Kuukaku was she didn't seem the type to pick a fight after a performance with the Kuchiki heir. While Soi had been thinking this Yoruichi had disappeared back downstairs.

It kind of hurt, to have no word in edge wise while she still couldn't stand quite right.

Sighing she followed her nonetheless, reminding herself to hit Rukia later.

* * *

The small fight which had been originally between Ganju and Rukia had been taken over by their older siblings, it was presumably about Kaien, which seemed to be the main cause of most of Kuukaku's hate lately. No surprise, it seemed the anniversary of the man's death wasn't too far from now. 

Considering Ganju's long-standing grudge it wasn't exactly a surprise.

The crowd had parted to form a little arena, it wasn't really necessary though as when Soi finally came to this sight Yoruichi, Urahara and a few other people were holding back an enraged Kuukaku but in classic Byakuya style the tall statue of a man wasn't so much as returning an angry glance.

This only succeeded in further pissing Kuukaku off.

As she yelled obscenities that not even Soi had heard across the space between them there was a loud noise which was somewhere between a clap and a muffled gunshot and the room seemed to pause and look at the noises origin. Standing on the side of the makeshift circle, hair slicked back and flanked by Gin was Aizen Sousuke.


	22. Bullet Theory

_Hey guys, by now you've come to expect my completely erratic update times, I didn't really like how this chapter came out. Anywho this's beta'd by Dami 3_

* * *

Gin had dressed casually for the night, declining drinks with Grimmjow and Aaroniero in preference of a smoke in the outside alley of the bar. It was snowing again, little flurries, feather-like and whimsical, falling from a black sky, getting lost in with his hair and melting on his skin. He stuck out his tongue to catch one but stopped with the effort halfway through. Internally he scoffed at this childish show of happiness and the false sentimentality he found in romanticizing the snowfall, trying to switch his eyes to the ground so he could see the second the snow landed in a slush puddle and became dirty. This city was a virus, he thought as he pulled a pack of cigarettes from one pocket and a lighter from the other. Infecting purity and destroying it. Ripping it to bits, he lit up his cigarette; Hinamori was a prime example, now sedated and sleeping in one of the upstairs room. She'd never be the same. There were others too, Matsumoto whom he'd found on the streets after she'd undergone so much abuse that her memory was in shambles, Soi Fong who lost her childhood the second Yoruichi left her here, the men he worked with their hate, struggles and anger.

Though his cigarette was only a quarter smoked he heard his name from within the bar and with a final deep inhale he flicked the glowing stick to the snowy cement ground, crushing the embers beneath his heel. Grinning he exhaled the smoke. This city was like a devil, stealing souls for its survival.

That was the reason why he'd done these things, he thought maybe, just maybe, Aizen could clean this place if he got what he wanted. Stuffing his hands into the warmth of his pockets, he realized how frozen his fingers were. As he walked back in, he examined Grimmjow arguing with Uliquiorra over something stupid and Aaroniero doing his impressions to entertain a already drunken Yammy. Halibel leaned silently against the wall and the other members of their party seemed to be in place already.

They traveled to the performance separately, Gin going off with Uliquiorra and the others finding their way, Aizen left separately from all of them and presumably last. Gin arrived a bit late, Hollow had already taken the stage and as he found his way to the front he felt his nerves begin to jump from the staggering amount of energy that surrounded him. As they left the stage his adrenaline was up, prepared, eyes flickered from Uliquiorra to Grimmjow, one on each side of him, he wasn't sure of Aizen's location.  
That's when Black Cat took the stage. It was so obvious how comfortable they were, Yoruichi eclipsed most of them though Soi Fong's presence was obvious by the fact that she entered last and looked the most displeased with the situation. Maybe that was her way of being nervous. Deeming himself prepared in mind and body, he let go for their performance, listened to only the music and hoped that he could regain himself. Then it stopped the yelling and the music and the time and he had to count the seconds until Uliquiorra nodded he signal confirmation and he reached into his pocket.

His long fingers brushed over the grip of his handgun, it had been a pin to get it past security but that bouncer would have done anything for a little extra spending money, it only stood to deepen his dislike of the corrupted people that resided here.  
His pointer finger curled around the trigger, caressing it as he reassured himself, then with a grin he tugged.

* * *

The amount of silence in the room was incredible; even Kuukaku had fallen uncharacteristically silent as she nursed a suddenly appeared bloody lip. It seemed that the crowd had frozen, silent and anxious, a herd just hearing the sound of an approaching lion, a crowd ready for the play's next act after a painful cliff hanger, ready to observe the good or bad that would come of it.  
Aizen looked about the crowd, seeing through them as if scanning for a single person with X-ray vision. Yoruichi and Soi Fong stood side by side on the stage, along with a crowd of people that had been hiding back there. In the slow motion of the entire situation, Soi Fong felt Yoruichi's shoulder shift and overlap hers to guard her from any oncoming threats. It made her chest feel constricted as if something was pushing against the sides of her ribs and in response to this caring instinctive protection she threaded two fingers through the belt loop closest to her on Yoruichi's jeans. It was amazing how much that small amount of contact with another body eased the growing fear she was feeling.

The taller woman flinched a bit but her eyes never strayed from the two men now standing in a circle in the middle of the floor, glancing around like two lost tourists. Aizen smiled, a very unsettling display of lips and began speaking, his normally quiet voice boomed in the silent room, bouncing off the sound enhancing walls. "Where are you? We have some business to attend to."  
There were a few more seconds of indirect silence followed by shuffling of feet and Urahara entered that seemingly taboo no man's land that surrounded the two men with a simple hat adjustment. Soi Fong glanced to her left where Urahara had been not long ago and wondered when he had vanished from that spot.  
Aizen looked pleased at his painless arrival and seemingly compliant nature. "Well, shall we settle this?"  
He said almost happily. Gin stiffened beside him upon hearing the slight jovial tone of his voice.

Urahara stood with his back facing Soi Fong and Yoruichi and as Aizen waited for the answer the hat wearing man turned to them with apology in his eyes, a message was relayed and the second Yoruichi received it ever muscle in her body seemed to tense up. In a second her jaw clenched, hand balled into a tight and angry fist that seemed to have her nails biting into the flesh of her palm's heel.

"Kisuke!"

All faces in the crowd turned to her as she yelled his name but Urahara disregarded her and responded to Aizen's question.  
"I'm sorry, but I can't."  
Aizen's eyes lost the shimmering gleam of happiness that they had possessed moments before and he closed his eyes and shrugged.

"Kira."

A click echoed from behind Soi and she glanced over her shoulder to see Kira Izuru shaking, and the barrel of a gun pressed to her cheek.  
Her throat tightened, it was hard to breathe. Her knees almost gave out as the adrenaline from fear coursed through her body; it took a few seconds for her analytical martial artist brain to kick in. As soon as it did, she felt her self analyzing everything, his weak spots, how fast he'd be able to shoot, if she could beat him too the punch and hit him before he could react. Unfortunately her body was still facing forward as she had only turned her head to see what the man was referring too and it put her in too awkward a position to do anything fast enough to save her life.

The boy was shaking, his hands vibrating so badly that it was impossible to tell whether it was the gun clacking or his teeth, Soi suddenly became completely aware of her surroundings, this included Matsumoto whom was standing behind Yoruichi. Aizen spoke again, "So Urahara, change of heart?"  
Soi's temper flared, she was being used as a fucking bargaining chip. Yoruichi looked like she was about to tackle Kira and tear out his throat with her bare hands,

"God damn it, Kisuke!"

Izuru seemed to be whimpering; he was obviously not in this position very often. Before Kisuke could answer, there was a sudden flash of motion as Matsumoto punched the boy hard in the gut. This was followed by a similar blow from Yoruichi whose fist immediately created red blossoms beneath the boy's nose.  
Both the women would later question their actions, think if this had been the cause to the resulting effect, Matsumoto would take responsibility for the following events only because Yoruichi wouldn't be able to bear having that on her conscious. Of course neither of them were yet thinking of how to weigh out the blame when they heard the bang.  
It was caused, they both quickly deduced, by the gun that had fallen from Kira's hand. Whether he had pulled the trigger upon being struck or if the gun had gone off when it hit the ground was unknown, but the second that the noise echoed around the club's walls there was instantaneous and mass panic.  
Urahara immediately lost sight of Aizen in the crowd; the man had retreated upon realizing Kira's insolence and left him to be captured. People trampled each other headed for the exit, not knowing that it was probably more dangerous attempting to get out than it now was in the establishment.  
When the message finally reached Yoruichi's brain that the gun had gone off she spun to look behind her.  
Ishida was on his knees, his hand was a bright red mess and his face was laden with sweat and the effort to fight back tears. Behind him, causing Yoruichi's eyesight to blur was Soi Fong, eyes closed, muttering to herself and pressing a hand to her shoulder as she lay on the floor.


	23. Bullet Theory 2: Juke to Jail

_Not dead. Didn't get this one beta'd please ignore all the bad grammar _

* * *

Aizen wasn't pleased.

He'd known that Kira was an amateur and yet, on Gin's recommendation , he'd gone against his better judgment and trusted the boy with as task he apparently couldn't complete. Now he was making his way through an onslaught of panicked club goers on his way to the exit, he was being tugged and pulled forward. Quietly he looked back and saw no one, no silver hair or blind eyes, in this absence of presence he surrendered himself to the tide and allowed these people to carry him towards the cold of the city.

While he flew into the starry city lights there were screams in Soi's ears, the ears that weren't working, she felt as if she were drowning, was that blood she heard?

She looked over the ceiling a thousand times, her eyes darting across her suddenly constricted field of vision. After a few scans her eye would return to the centered, neutral position and the process would restart as if she were stuck in a loop.

Was there something in her lungs?

No, that's not where the bullet had hit her, the pain told her that much though most of it's whispers were mumbled she made out at least that. Shock from loss of blood, she took deep breaths, painfully aware of her body. A shape entered her field of vision, never before had she felt so secure in the knowledge of Urahara being close by.

He leaned down and his face focused in her mind, the scruffy path where he's neglected shaving and the serious grey of his eyes, he was smiling to calm her, "Hold on, I'll get you somewhere."

If anyone else had said that she probable would've attempted a sarcastic reply, his tone cause her to trust him, swallow her curses and nod solemnly.

The man stood back up and slipped from her sight, he turned to glance at Yoruichi whose state of calm was plummeting past Soi's to the point where she didn't seem to have no response whatsoever to her surroundings. Her position was static on stage where she looked upon the events in slow motion like a projector, super imposing the last minutes of her life onto the crowd before her, her mind fifteen minutes behind. Ishida was a ball on the floor, his damaged hand clutched to his chest, as if bringing it closer to his heart would halt the pain. Blood soaked the white of his shirt and seemed to be creeping through the fabric and as it advanced her lost more and more of his consciousness, Urahara put a hand on his shoulder and felt him convulse with shivers.

With a great crashing an orange blur leapt skillfully over Kuukaku's drum set and skittered to a stop in front of the injured man, Ichigo pried his arm from his chest and wrapped it in his own shirt, "Dammit Ishida, don't you dare."

Isane had appeared next to Soi before Urahara could blink, she'd shoved her way through a good number of people and stumbled her awkward way onto stage. Her hand found itself pressed sternly, as if to chastise the woman's broken flesh for allowing the bullet's entrance, it argued by spitting blood up between the medic's fingers. Violent words not normally on Isane's tongue slithered out from between her lips.

"The damn bullet's still in there, we need an ambulance." Before Urahara could offer his opinion she turned and yelled, "Someone call a fucking ambulance."

Sweat dripped from her face as she watched a few bystanders taking refuge on stage obey her, "Urahara wear's your shirt?"

He looked dumbstruck for a moment, "I don't know."

"I need something to press against the wound, anything will work."

Looking back to her patient Isane held her hand out behind her, waiting for something, her hands grasped the rounded edge of the object she received and he was surprised to find his hat in her hand. This shock didn't keep her from immediately exerting pressure.

"We'll help."

Urahara, now hatless, looked up to see Tousen flanked by a gargantuan man with two shocks of orange hair as eyebrows and an odd beard. He looked more than capable of carrying Soi and that's just what he did on Tousen's direction, she looked like a bleeding doll in his arms, Isane stood with him pressing the hat to ebb the flow of blood. Yoruichi came to life.

"Put her down!"

The man regarded her with disgust, thinking her insane, not insane, livid.

"Yoruichi she needs help." Even the blonde had lost faith in her sanity and as she charged forward to attempt a futile attack he held her back with forceful arms, she thrashed away from his hold.

"I don't trust him."

"Shihouin wouldn't it be best if-"

The blind man focused in on her, she was frozen.

"I won't let him take her."

Not even she knew why she was in this rage, these men weren't right, Tousen wasn't right and Soi was too important to take chances.

Tousen remained silently and his fingers twitched towards his pocket.

In that second a thousand thought hit her like the bullets that she expected, he was with Aizen, he had a gun, he wouldn't miss as Kira had. There was a yell as his face was smashed in by the avenging demon of Urahara's fist, protective in his panic.

In a fury he landed on the man's fist, grabbed his collar and broke sunglasses with his punches. Soi was on the ground again, the big man had dropped him in the time it took for Urahara to beat Tousen he'd turned to help his friend and lost or purposely relinquished his grip on Soi Fong.

Isane had managed, to some degree to catch her friend but the deed had been done.

Helpless to do anything against the behemoth of a man with her bare hands she was fully prepared to try and as she stepped forward her foot hit a solid object. It slid across the floor and curiously she snatched it from the ground.

Urahara stood up from the now bleeding man and watched his friend point a gun at their false helpers chest, his ears rang out and everyone stopped to look at the reverberation. He backpedaled a few steps, surprised at the newly opened hole in his chest cavity. As he took another step back his foot found no

Ground to land on and his back hit with a crash on the club's dance floor.

* * *

The officer didn't look like a member of the police force. Not that every inch of her body wasn't mature, it was mature and then some, her mannerisms were not. Her voice was hauntingly childish with a speech impediment that only stood to make her body seem like more of a mismatch.

Soi Fong and Ishida had been shipped away to the continuation of their life in a loud white truck and now Yoruichi drank a shaky cup of coffee in the back of the vehicles remaining twin. Neliel Oderschvank now stood in front of her asking questions in that backwards puzzle piece voice, annoying her, where had her patience run off to?

"Did you see who shot the first round?

"Izuru Kira."

He was long gone, fled with Gin, Aizen and the others.

"And the bullet hit?"

"Ishida Uryu first then Soi Fong."

"You know both of them?"

"Yes."

"How well?"

"Ishida's an acquaintance. Soi Fong's-.."

Neliel looked up from her note taking book and waited for the finish.

"She's a….friend."

Why was that hard to say that? Lover flowed so much easier but it would let go of her vocal chords.

"And the other man?"

"We'd never met before."

"Did you know his name?"

"No."

"Did you see who shot him?"

She froze, she had, she had, she had, she was going to prison, it hurt her throat, there were at least a dozen witnesses the second she asked someone else it was over.

"I did it."

Had she said that? No.

Neliel turned around to see Urahara, "He was trying to kidnap our friend, his accomplice had a gun."

The blonde man stood to a back drop of lights with an apologetic line of a mouth, his hat gone and chest bare as it had been since the concert and as hard as she tried she could not tell the officer that he was wrong. She hated herself for it.


	24. Newyear Resolute

_Happy New Year._

* * *

What made it so ironic was that not but an hour ago it had been his birthday, few people knew besides Yoruichi simply because he only told certain people that December thirty-first, the last day of the year, was his birthday. His shaggy blonde head rested against the icy glass of the cop cars backseat, it made him feel feverish, his breath stained the surface and his fingers wrote nonsense in kanji on the glass.

Neliel made no noise as she drove and he was left to contemplate what he'd done. Confessed.

Yoruichi owed him.

* * *

There was very little that frightened Yoruichi more than the completeness of silence and on some level she was thanking Orihime for her attempt at soothing them all with a hummed melody. Kuukaku had disappeared in the roar of her brothers motorcycle and while Hisagi had offered a ride she wasn't about to trust one of Hitsugaya's bodyguards after what had become of Tousen and Kira, she felt some what bad for turning the boys kindness away but the emotion was drowned in the numbness of aversion.

Rukia sat with her chin on her fist in the front seat next to her older brother who was silent as he drove. Yoruichi felt like making a bitter comment at him for some reason, it's always easy to blame the most responsible person after a tragic occurrence, but she kept her mouth closed for fear of being told to exit the vehicle. Ichigo had stolen Urahara's keys and, despite his lack of license, sped off with Chad riding shotgun, so Orihime sat beside her though still infinitely far away on the other side of the backseat. Yoruichi wished that she'd take up more space, just so she could see if she could still feel another human beside her, make sure there wasn't nerve damage, her ears were still ringing.

Normally it would've been a race to the hospital, to Soi Fong, but for some reason it wasn't, the hospital seemed far away, never to grow closer and she was tired of futile running at the background. If she got there it would be true, she'd see Soi Fong destroyed and it'd be true.

A wave of nausea hit her stomach, maybe she should get out of the car.

Something warm leaned softly against her arm, Orihime smiled up at her, had read her mind and there was a transfer of warmth.

"Happy Birthday Yoruichi-san."

It was impossible not to cry.

Unohana rubbed her hands together under the warm water, cold water before an operation and warm after, ritualistic. Soi Fong had been muttering Yoruichi's name under heavy sedation for the last fifteen minutes and had only recently been moved to a bed for observation. The bullet had been close enough to the axillary artery to warrant it's immediate removal but the operation had gone smoothly and the only foreseeable outcome was Soi Fong's inability to use her arm for a short while. Though she knew this might hinder the band's success it was good news for the girl, no paralysis or bone damage.

Ishida had been a different matter.

While she had insisted to take his case herself she could hardly deny his father, not only because of peer respect but she doubted he would relinquish his son. Ryuken was an impressive doctor though he seemed far too angry to perform at his highest capacity, there was an extra dose of anger in his harsh blue-black eyes.

Unohana wiped her hands on one of the towels and sighed. She'd already enforced the rule that no one was allowed to see the recovering girl and had to act on it when Kuukaku had tried to force her way through, putting two members of her medical team in the ER on her way.

And yet there was no doubt in her mind that at that moment Isane was conspiring against her in some way to help both her patient and Yoruichi. Slowly she replaced the towel and looked up at the ceiling, her braid was coming undone, "I guess that's just why I love her."

Isane was right.

She'd received the phone call from Yoruichi on her cell phone and they'd met in the bathroom, Yoruichi's face still tear-slick, Isane didn't question it, didn't want to bait the beast that she knew lurked behind apathetic gold. "I need your help.

"For what?"

"To see Soi Fong."

"I could get fired."

This was a feeble argument and they both knew it, Unohana would never fire such a talented and caring pupil. Isane sighed, unknowingly imitating what her teacher had done not moments before. If Unohana's hands weren't bound by responsibility how would she act? Isane smiled and slid her doctor's coat off her shoulders. The doctor's ID that adorned her throat contained Isane's picture but both hoped the ignorance of others would serve them this time. Her coat was a size too big but it looked official enough and she headed through the doors with only a passing glance from Byakuya who instantly understood and nodded her forward.

The doors swung behind her, revealing snapshot glances of Isane, smaller and frailer in her tank-top and not her lab coat, smiling admiringly, then holding back her sister who'd realized what was going on and had set to conspicuously cheering her forward.

This was a resolution, a new year's resolution, a personal decision and she hoped to god that it was right. Slowly she passed those who considered her their peer by as simple change of clothes, she saw Ise sitting outside of one of the doors looking over a clipboard. She would've sat down beside her, asked her things, how Shunsui was, how Ukitake was doing. Instead she walked forward, the woman didn't so much as look up or acknowledge her in the least.

That was probably for the best, any distraction could pull her off-course.

Isane had told her the room number and she hesitated outside for a few minutes letting the smell of syringes and damage to humanity fill her nostrils before heading in. Soi Fong was unconscious, but she had expected nothing else, even if she woke up she probably wouldn't be herself completely. That was fine.

All of her steps were precise and accurate as if she'd chosen which tiles to step on prematurely.

For seconds she stood over her, deliberate.

Leaning over she kissed her, once, twice. Was this taking advantage of her?

"Yoruichi?"

She wasn't shocked, didn't feel guilty. Soi Fong muttered her name a few more times, thoughtlessly propelled by medication.

It was enough to jar her from her rapist state of mind and sit contemplatively on the chair beside the bed, she wouldn't allow herself to touch the beautiful body before her. That would cause her to do things she would no doubt regret later.

She was prepared too wait.

The man in the cell beside his was drunk out of his wits and had probably pissed himself more than once in the two hours they'd been acquaintances, they had him for processing and there was still ink on his fingers. So far he'd entertained himself with a magazine that he'd beguiled out of one of the women. There was a sense all around him that wrongdoing was being committed. Quietly he thought only of Yoruichi and of the murder that he had committed, he had committed it, if he was going to follow this lie through then he was going to convince even himself of his crime. He thought of her with the mind of a friend and a man and there was nothing that could stop him from that, for seconds he even thought this would bring her too him.

And in his cell miles away from the hospital he couldn't see Soi Fong's eyes, flutter open cognizant for the first time all night or hear the soft shifting of Yoruichi leaning in and whispering her name.

"You're here."

For the first time in a long time Soi Fong's face was gentle and happy hiding all hints of the angry hurt girl that lived within the irises.

"Yeah." Dark hands on a light face.

"I have a question Soi."

She mumbled for a few seconds before coming up with a recognizable answer. "What is it?"

Her words were slurred with morphine, maybe she wouldn't comprehend this but it had to be asked.

"Will you…" Here she paused, took a breath, "Come with me to America?"


	25. 3 Scenes of Scenic Views

_Spent the weekend at Katsucon, a Yorusoi comission inspired me to update._

_Thank you A.Y and Iris Chen for the comissions_

_-Ad_

* * *

There was something definite about prison. The idea that there was absolutely nothing outside of the cement and metal was sickeningly comforting to him and he reveled in it because it was all he had. Visible through the bars of his cell was the almost sickly thin back of Ururu, how she'd gotten in she wouldn't say and she read her comic amongst the lewd gestures and comments of the affection deprived inmates.

He had told her already that she need not subject herself to their shouts just to keep him company. The response was a turning of her head and a smile from her normally sad eyes, "Don't worry, I'll stay here."

There was an anger in him, Yoruichi hadn't come to visit, granted it wasn't the end of the night he tried to give her slack but couldn't overlook the lack of gratitude from the reason he was here. The emotion had been magnified when his only phone call had been wasted on a call to Yoruichi's cell phone which had only yielded an explanation of Yoruichi's mostly unknown whereabouts from Kuukaku.

Only his god damned sense of honor kept him from the bitter taste in his mouth.

It wasn't very much.

A tall skinny man occupied the cell across the hall and was so far the only man who hadn't bothered Ururu, whether it be from misplaced kindness or annoyance he had even yelled for the cell block to "Shut their fucking mouths."

Urahara had made eye contact with him once or twice, or as much eye contact as you can make with a one-eyed man, his limbs were snakelike and his hair extended long passed his shoulders.

"Oyyyyyy."

Urahara looked up from his knees, they'd given him a white tee shirt but hadn't replaced his hat, the man was leaning through the bars, it was a wonder how his body didn't slip right through.

"Little girl, could you go grab me a soda."

He tossed a bill and it fluttered to the ground like a wounded butterfly, Ururu looked to Urahara for assurance before picking up the bill and hurrying down the hall.

"Shame letting her stay around a place like this. You her dad?"

He shook his straw head, "Guardian but not her father."

His response was a chin hitch, he seemed like a man that didn't know where his offspring might be.

"Why'd you take your vacation?"

It took him a second to realize it was a way of asking why he was in prison, he didn't know if it was lighthearted or not.

"Shot a guy."

Might as well stick with his lie, a lie is more convincing when you make it true, when you live it.

"Murder or manslaughter?"

"Should I call in my lawyer?"

The man chuckled good-heartedly, chuckling about murder, it didn't even seem out of place.

"They've got me I here for break n' enter with a side order of assault with a deadly weapon."

Ururu came back with a bottle and slipped it lengthwise through the cage, he nodded and gulped down most of it, there was a tattoo on his tongue.

"Kisuke Urahara."

He swallowed his beverage and gave a small quenched sigh, "Nnoitora Jiruga."

* * *

Soi Fong's body had a certain system to it, because she didn't handle emotion well it had a fail safe, when all else had no effect her body quickly switched into auto-pilot which, for her, was anger.

Being asked something as monumental as this by Yoruichi should've easily broke her tolerance and had her livid. Instead she felt claustrophobic, as if the reality she had wished for years ago had changed it's flight course and doubled back only to crash through the hospital ceiling and land neatly in her lap. It pressed in on her, pressed the air out of her lungs.

Yoruichi's eyes were seen in double, triple, they swam around her until she swam in them, a familiar golden pool. Her hands shook, trying to push the walls away.

It seemed Yoruichi was unsympathetic to the weak state of her physically and the fact that she was recovering from shock.

It was hard to remember that Soi Fong was not a super hero.

One of the machines attached to her started beeping, not in a threatening intrusive way, more of a cadence, a tempo for their conversation.

"I have the money and if you came with me…"

It was frightening to have to be the stronger one, Yoruichi was not here to rescue her but to beg her, to seek her validation, to have someone to run with and yet she couldn't help but listen.

"If your with me there won't be any reason for me to come back."

This was her goddess at the weakest, a goddess that had killed, guilty and stained with her own cowardice, a goddess she wasn't used to. Just as Soi Fong was not an invincible super hero, Yoruichi was not above her own impulses which were much too human for anyone's good.

So she realized just how absurd her fantasy was, her fantasy of running away with Yoruichi from the dirty city she knew and leaving behind the webs of people she knew. Too leave everything behind in the blind pursuit of love, it was admirable. Admirable and impossible. Admirable and senseless.

Her fantasy was so close and she couldn't take it because she was so damn responsible, so damn herself.

There was no reason to say the answer, they both knew it, it was a childish thing to make others cleanup your messes and they'd grown up in the last years.

"Go somewhere and sleep."

Was that feeling exhaustion? She'd hardly noticed it, she kicked her shoes off and crawled into the hospital bed beside the girl who was small enough to be her younger sister. Younger sister, lover, younger sister, lover, lover, lover, lover.

* * *

Matsumoto had found him, it had been easy to do, she'd carried Kira out of the club with a bloodied face and shaken him until he'd spit it out. It hadn't taken long, he seemed apologetic.

A street address and a password, it was a cliché entrance into the darkened basement of an unrecognizable building with a classic rectangle eye hole for a thug to look through and deem you worthy to pass the threshold.

It wasn't necessary to use the password, the door was open and the inside dark, she searched the rooms, alcohol and signs of recent inhabitants, a bloodied baseball bat in one of the closets, probably Shunsui's blood.

There was an eeriness floating around reminiscent of a haunted Halloween ride, the possibility for something around every corner but determination was an ocean in which fear drown and her voyage continued.

Continued into a dark upper room where the windows where covered in cloth, where a rotten smell filled the air and sitting in the corner with a lit cigarette was the fox faced of Ichimaru Gin.

The glowing embers cast ghost shadows on his already pale skin, it was the rooms only illumination. When they were children he'd like play tricks on her, stay perfectly still until she got close and jumped up to scare her.

"That's what ya' get' Rangiku, when ya' let people fool ya'"

He'd say with a victorious grin. Now he wasn't smiling, his eyes were open and looking at her, his clothes were bloody, she hoped to god there wasn't another casualty of this night, this city.

He spat the cigarette to the floor and crushed it with the heel of his hand.

His body was propped against a corner of the room, with the cigarette gone only moonlight that slipped like a thief through the fabric blinds could light their escapade.

He coughed to break the silence, to prove he was alive. It broke her restraint and she ran to sit kneel before him. He'd taken a bad beating but he wasn't dead, wasn't unconscious.

"I wasn't useful anymore." He said talking to her and the ceiling, "I suggested he use Kira, he couldn't find Kira to punish, guess it was my fault anyway."

Matsumoto wanted to tell him not to talk, she didn't want to here him explain why he was with Aizen, didn't want him to admit it to her.

"I only asked that they bring me out into the alley so I could see the sky, pity there weren't any stars."


	26. Where Reapers Can Rest

_Hey, just to keep me updating on time, if I take to long, complain to my email (__)__, that'll get me going.  
_

_No I'm being serious._

_Love (Ad)  
_

* * *

One of Isane's qualities was a large inclination to worry. Whether it be too much or the perfect amount no one could say as her worrying was usually well-founded and without her warnings disasters would probably be far more frequent.

So when she said to Ukitake, "That's seems risky," He took it painfully too heart. Ukitake himself was a careful man, he didn't often charge into situations that would get him killed or even exhausted as aware as he was of his physical condition. It was these things along with his loyalty and thoughtfulness that had caused Matsumoto to call him with her predicament which is how this situation arose in the first place.

He'd been walking back from visiting the Ishida boy, Isane escorting him under the guise as a guest (it would seem Yoruichi had run off with her clearance) when his phone rang.

Isane had watched in mild fascination as his eyes grew ever darker with the continuation of the conversation. The only words he'd said were, "I'll see what I can do," followed by a lengthy contemplative sigh after flipping his phone shut.

"You know you're not supposed to have those on in this ward."

She said uselessly indicating the pocket he'd stuffed the phone into, he was too busy running anxious fingers through his cloudy hair.

"Something else horrible happen?"

Isane asked, it was a joking question, one she hoped was not the truth. Ukitake, physically taxed and one of the few members of those still waiting that was still awake had just enough care lacking from him to explain the entire situation to the girl.

"Matsumoto's found Gin in a bad way."

"That's not bad news."

Juushiro was momentarily thrown by her animosity towards Gin, he reasoned that the med student was a good friend of Soi Fong's and considering the nights events had every reason to have a distaste to the fox-eyed felon.

It was an odd thing to think that there was such a difference in knowledge between him in the girl, it was as if Yoruichi's running away had created a generation gap between them and she knew not the group's previous dynamics.

So in this three in the morning state he opened himself even wider. The script went something like this:

"Gin wasn't always a bad guy, you know Matsumoto right?"

"The girl with large-"

"That one, she was his fiancé, the month before they were gonna get married he left."

"Like Yoruichi?"

"Around the same time, there were allegations that they'd run off together but Yamamoto informed us that Urahara had disappeared too and that made more sense."

"Yamamoto?"

"My boss."

"It still doesn't seem like there's grounds to trust him."

"There isn't, which is why all of this is so screwed, Matsumoto wants me to go pick him up and drop the two of them somewhere safe."

"That seems risky, not too mention unfair she can't get someone else?"

"I have a distinct feeling she's tried."

"She trusts him?"

"Soi Fong trusts Yoruichi."

The dialogue broke into pieces as she paused in the hall, there was a certain rose in trust that had longer thorns than all the rest. Rangiku and Sois' hands may end up bleeding but for what other reason did she want to be a doctor than to heal their wounds?

"Will you bring them back here?"

Ukitake rubbed the back of his head, he hadn't even agreed to pick them up yet, "I don't think I can, with Yoruichi and Kuukaku here the second they saw him he'd need more than a good doctor."

Isane nodded.

Hanatarou had been working the desk at that time, it was something that the interns usually did but he'd been roped into working the night shift once again by slick tongued would-be underlings.

He'd never heard his own name over the public announcement system before, he'd never done anything wrong and he'd never done anything extraordinarily right and this level of above average average-ness left few even knowing his name much less announcing it.

So for the first few seconds after hearing, "Would Hanatarou Yamada please report to the ER," he did not comprehend it at all, he continued reading through the names on the check-in list knowing that he wouldn't see anybody he knew anyway.

When the message finally traveled from his ears to his brain he hopped up confused and pondering the reasons why someone might find interest in his company, maybe someone had blamed something on him?

It was only a few hallways to the ER, it was purposefully close to the entrance so dying patients who came in the wrong door still had a chance of surviving.

He'd almost taken out three nurses and a wheel chair on the way but he got there in one piece and found Isane standing with a tall silver-haired man, he stared up at both of them.

Of course if anyone where to be announcing a need for his help it would be Isane, she at least knew his name.

Immediately the girl grabbed his shoulder and handed him, quite literally over to the man.

"Take him with you,"

"Are you sure you can afford giving me one of your doctors."

"Most of the action at three in the morning takes place in the ER, we'll be fine."

Hanatarou looked confusedly between the two, his eyeballs ping-ponging from one face to another.

The man nodded and pulled him out through the waiting room, where Ganju's older sister stared at him, and into the cold.

* * *

Halibel's headphones devoured either side of her face, the earpieces were huge and between those and the scarf she wore it was hard to make sense of her identity. Grimmjow and Ulquiorra walked back and forth in front of her seat, heir mouths opening and closing, Grimmjow's more so, an arguments had arisen but that was why she'd bought noise canceling headphones.

Aizen didn't need words, as soon as he walked into the room, flanked by the cloudy eyed Tousen the two men stopped their childish bickering.

She didn't bother to take the behemoth's off, she just clicked the volume down on her music player enough so she could hear him and still drown out the din of breathing and coughs.

"This was a complete and utter failure."

They all knew that, they also all knew what Grimmjow and Tousen had done to Gin in the back alley of the hideaway and that such violence wouldn't be the end of Aizen's wrath.

"I expect better from all of you next time, we won't be relying on weak links."

His venom gurgled up from the floor, as silent as his eyes, it wrapped around their ankles and gave on clear warning, 'that weak link better not be you.'

"Halibel, I want you to go chat with Miss.Shihouin, peacefully if you can, work something out, her weakness is obvious, use it."

She nodded and turned her headphones back up, she'd heard all she'd need.

* * *

This was the first time she'd ever done this. She had a feeling that Yoruichi had done it before, maybe more than once, they had shared a bed after all. It was almost calming, she couldn't very well sleep in this condition, drugs ran marathons under her skin and as doped as she was she feared that sleep would be irreversible in this condition, she hated hospitals.

There were other reasons, mainly Yoruichi curled against her, as vulnerable as she had ever been. It only now occurred to her that the woman might be cold in the tee-shirt she'd worn from the performance, only now realized how easy it was to free her arm from the blanket and run her finger up the chocolate landscape of her skin. With the depth of her sleep came the security of never being found out, she kissed the back of her neck and twirled bits of indigo hair between her fingers.

Her hands reached to the woman's abdomen and pressed against the smooth muscle there, higher until she felt the woman's heartbeat, she pressed her ear to her back and listened.

She thanked the little organ for it's good work, knowing that it probably held both of their lives in it's tiny muscles, quite the epiphany to have in such a situation, she probably wouldn't remember it later and knowing that caused her to forgot all together what she was thinking and fall back into the tempo of her heart beat. They'd both dance to it for a bit longer, infuse it with their voices and play it out in music.

Gin and his dirty city couldn't touch the white of the hospital sheets, at least not for that night.

So Soi had one more epiphany she thought not to forget, that sanctuary could be found even with a wounded arm and incapacitated body as long as your with the right person. She'd wanted to write that one down.


	27. StartEnd

_In real world-land I'm getting published, cool right?_

* * *

Yawns awoke a sleeping city, forums buzzed about Soul Cutter/Black Cat's tragic mishap and flowers were promptly sent from empathizing fans. Halibel was almost disturbed, this was not security, it was a pathetic excuse for an identity checkpoint though she assumed not many people orchestrated raids on hospitals. The idea flittered around her for a moment, there were an innumerable amount of things you could steal from a hospital after all, but she brushed the annoying notion away before it buzzed any closer to her ear.

Aizen had said to do it peacefully, a word she was not entirely unused to, as it stood Uliquiorra and herself were always sent to do these diplomatic bits being the most stable of Aizen's available vanguard whose numbers seemed to be dwindling these days with Yami taking a long nap in a pine box. Beside her slurping an ice cream was the effeminate Luppi.

"You shouldn't be eating that in the hospital, it's suspicious."

He attacked a bit that had begun the trek down his wrist leaving a slimy swatch of skin where his tongue had assaulted.

"You're wearing a scarf and headphones the size of a continent, not to mention your hair is close to orange, I'd assumed being conspicuous wasn't a fear."

He relinquished his hold on the slimy wafer cone into a trash bin and wiped his hands on his misgendered low rider jeans.

"Gosh, sorry mom, you're like Aizen." The boy paused for a moment, thinking, growing silent, "It really is too bad about Gin, I don't think he deserved what they did."

Halibel found it best to ignore him when he began talking about Gin, it was easiest that way as his distaste for Aizen's methods could easily heighten his chances of falling victim to them.

They'd received the room number easily from the front desk with a false story and apparently forgotten identification, horribly simple, the woman, who didn't seem as if she'd wanted to be awake this early in the morning, was compassionate enough in her vocational discontent to allow them free passage and the room of their hurt 'cousin.' It wouldn't have been extraordinarily hard to detect either way, there was a pile of bouquets just outside the door.

"You'll stay-"

"Here. I know, don't rub my subordinate status in my face."

Sick of the mere tone of his voice she stepped gingerly over the still sleeping flowers and let the door shut him up.

Yoruichi had, at this, time woken up, or to be more correct she'd woken up an three hours ago when Soi's condition had taken a backwards step. It was realized that bullet fragments had been missed in surgery. Deeply annoyed she'd chased after the doctor until they pushed her back, no access they said, she'd almost punched one of them but that could've been a dream, they'd sent her back to the room. The idea of Soi in danger still ran back and forth in her head but her body failed to comply to her wishes to wake. How long had it been since she slept anyway? Either way she'd been dozing since and only managed to snap herself up at the sound of the door opening and for some odd reason believed herself to be in Kuukaku's room.

"Kuukaku, breakfast."

When this request wasn't answered with a reluctant grunt she bothered to check whom it was she was speaking with.

"You're in the wrong room."

It clicked, the elevator, forest green eyes that reflected the numbers on the buttons.

This was punctuated by the fragment of a sentence. "I'm not."

* * *

Hanatarou hadn't slept in twenty-four hours, he'd put in thirteen stitches on four different cuts, exhausted a supply of bandages, used half a box of gauze and ended with so much antiseptic he'd thought he'd achieved a contact high. Gin however, was sleeping soundly as Matsumoto paced her apartment, her hair was a catastrophe and make-up was faded, a gorgeous mess Ukitake had left the moment he'd arrived, not even pausing to receive her thanks and only letting them hit his back feebly. It was obvious that someone had convinced him into it and he'd decided that he wanted to take no part of the morally correct sin he'd just committed.

Hanatarou's head collided with the top of his first-aid kit as he almost collapsed from exhaustion once again. Matsumoto, carrying a tray of randomly assorted breakfast stuffs and three mugs of coffee placed the array down as Hanatarou entered the kitchen, she pulled him into her, muttering "thank you"s with lightening speed and causing him to blush with the current position of his face in relative location to her breasts. His release was a relief that allowed him an even more rewarding breath of air, her entire house smelled like perfume.

"I should leave." He didn't have to explain that he feared whatever thing had caused Ukitake to leave too quickly, she understood. "Do you need a ride?"

He rubbed the back of his head, she was incredibly kind and intimidating, "I can have Ganju pick me up, I'm glad I could help."

He laughed awkwardly, allowing Matsumoto to entrust him with a bagel, he didn't enjoy coffee very much but didn't mention it and took the food only because he needed something to give him energy a bit longer.

Yamada's hand enclosed on the doorknob and it turned in his hand though not by his hands locomotion, he knew before it was pushed excitedly into his face that something expressively horrible would happen and while this notion occurred to him often he was never more sure than that moment in it's undeniable correctness.

Hitsugaya fumed in.

Hanatarou was trapped behind the door.

Matsumoto looked with scared eyes from her boss to the open bedroom door.

"This has caused me so much trouble."

In one terrible moment Matsumoto watched his eyes follow hers until they reached her guest. If Matsumoto hadn't tackled him he would've torn out every last stitch Hanatarou had so painstakingly placed.

Hate seethed from him as he struggled against Matsumoto's arms.

"What the hell are you thinking!? He's a fucking criminal Rangiku! This is illegal! He's the enemy, he got Soi Fong shot, he took Hinamori!"

Despite his self-assured strength it was a simple process in his messy anger to pin his arm behind him and push his face into the floor. His yells were muffled in carpet and he swallowed quite a few fibers before he halted his struggling.

"Aizen left him for dead Toushiro."

"I don't care if Aizen stuck a knife in his back, I don't operate on enemy of my enemy."

"You operate on a personal hatred. Stop being a child!"

That quieted him instantly, that word, child, what a horrid reminding word. He was a child and he was acting like one, pressed into the carpet, his composure was gone.

Gin coughed to break his moment of epiphany and he looked to the profile of the man laying there, it could've been his deathbed. Hitsugaya had never seen a deathbed but imagined it wouldn't be anything spectacular. A bed is a bed is a bed, dying man or not.

So his muscles loosened and Matsumoto knew to release him by the connection that comes from working for someone for years. Hitsugaya pushed himself up, his elbows near his head, to his feet he straightened his jacket and smoothed his spiky head.

"Who fixed him?"

Hanatarou stumbled from behind the door, his nose bleeding tracks past his lips, pooling on his chin, his steps were dizzy. "I did sir."

The boy shuffled inside of his chest pocket, pulled out a crumpled check and found a pen on Rangiku's counter, he scribbled something down and handed it to Hanatarou, the young man's eyes dominated his face as he observed the digits. It wasn't a fantastic amount but easily more than he'd held in his hands in a while. "Sir, I don't think-"

"Take it and go, I'm not in the mood."

He nodded, bowed his head, dripped a bit of blood onto his shoes and rushed out that door as if his passage out would burst into flames if he didn't sprint.

Hitsugaya turned his back to Gin and inhaled, "Sorry it took me so long to get here, I had to post Urahara's bail. It was pricey too, damn court system."

* * *

Nnoitora watched as the guards cleaned out the cage across from him. He was a lucky bastard after all, he should've known, men like that never stayed very long, They were always sprung within the night, he had rich friends apparently, a squirt with a suit, word spread fast among caged dogs.

Another guard walked past his cage, he snarled like an animal. Why did they need so many men to clean out a rats cage? He hadn't seemed diseased, clever but not diseased.

Instead the guard tapped a night stick against his bars to rattle the cage and get the animal riled up, "You're free to go."

His visible eye widened at the sound of those words.

The animal was sprung from his cage.

Uliquiorra stood with his hands in his pockets, waiting. This had been an order, a simple mission to bring the money and exchange it for a man, what was the price of freedom? It was decided in a courtroom.

Nnoitora's leg seemed to be visible before most of the rest of his body, his limbs were lengthy, each a tree from the earth of his torso. He pulled himself through the door as not to forget a branch and looked around outside the portal. Peeked back into the world.

"Come on."

Aizen had given him a time limit, this was the last plot, the last pieces of the masterminds puzzle and Uliquiorra planned to stay until the end.

"Gimme a second." Nnoitora leaned his gaunt body up against the desk where a police officer sat giving dirty looks.

"Just wondering sir if you'd know a woman named Neliel?"

The police officer refused to answer and Nnoitora's mouth twisted in disgust, "Fucking pig."

He pushed the papers on the man's desk into his lap and followed Uliquiorra out.

"I'll do it myself."


	28. Love you a New Ordered World

_No Otakon this year -sigh- Anyway, here's the chapter update, thanks for reading :)_

_My beta-er is at a horse farm please excuse any mistakage._

* * *

  


Love is a twisted kind of ignorance. It was the kind that kept Hinamori sitting there like a pet, that blinded Soi Fong to all reason beyond simple betrayal and it was the kind that kept humans alive.

Love perhaps that kept Urahara up till five in the morning with his hand on the strings of his guitar. He wasn't strumming, the guitar was a catalyst of thought and fell just short of a kind of container for his genius. There were options now and he knew it.

He was their target but he was safer from them here than he'd ever be in that jail, unfortunately his friends were not. It had been idiotic of him to believe that simply leaving would erase the cycle of betrayals he'd perpetuated.

Situations do no heal themselves with time, they only marinate if unresolved and result in events commonly associated with revenge. Result in people like Aizen and he should have known that the friendship he had offered was false. He'd returned from their encounters and offered himself up as a musician and a comrade, it was a load of bullshit.

"We can protect you considering the work you've done for us."

Neliel's silhouette revealed the harsh reality.

"You can't protect all of them." And that was the problem, Aizen though calculative was overwhelmingly cruel and if he would no come out of hiding there would be pain until he did. The idea of Kira sticking a gun to Soi's head but on a much larger scale. A bullet in the back of every friend he'd ever had and there was no way, even if Soi and Yoruichi were safe. Kuukaku, Ichigo, Renji, Byakuya, they were not and would not be until either Aizen got what it was he wanted or was gone.

"If you release the information about Hogyoku you'll be thrown back in jail, and no matter how big Mr. Hitsugaya makes the check, you won't be getting out."

It was obvious that he wouldn't release the information, even if he did and was thrown to the depths of some cell, those people who Aizen disliked had a habit of mysteriously disappearing or failing to live through the pressure of an imprisoned life. Still he wouldn't promise the secret was safe with him, without Yoruichi's money and assistance there was no escape and he was not heartless enough to once again tear her away from Soi, and he needed information. It was the one thing that was now more useful than money. There was hope in the digits in his pocket.

"I'm gonna have worm shit in my head when this is over, but this guy, he's the one that can take care of it, whether you like it or not."

* * *

Luppi leaned against the wall outside of the hospital room. He had a regret in his head about throwing out that ice cream cone and now could only lick the faint vanilla taste from his sticky childish fingers. For the past ten minutes while calm conversation raged behind the guarded door he had been crushing flower petals beneath the heels of his shoes. Pretty purple and red petals crushed into multi-colored juice reminding him or flavored syrups and a dislike of Sousuke but everything reminded him of that. It wouldn't be long now, everyone was saying. With Nnoitora out it wouldn't be long until they got what they wanted from the stripe hatted fool and won the city back.

The door opened a crack and curious he looked inside, met with the harsh stern stare of Halibel leading out Yoruichi who looked more captive than captivating. Her eyes met his dubbing him enemy in a decisive and angry flat out stare.

He faked a mocking shiver and gave a deep "Ooohhhh Scary."

People tended to blame everybody when they were in a situation they found less than desirable. No, doubt Yoruichi wasn't liking herself right about now. Halibel stuck a finger into Luppi's face, "This will be your escort, he'll take you to Aizen."

Yoruichi regarded him with mild disgust, she hadn't even known up until a second ago that this being was male and didn't think he was nearly old enough to drive. Of course looks were often times deceiving, her being the first to know it. Now she was angry, she felt as if handcuffs had enclosed around her wrists and in the hands of Halibel was the chain that led her, it all had to do with three little words that the goddess dare not contest for fear that they were ever more than a bluff.

"We'll kill her."

It was vile and hopeless. She would punch the woman in the teeth but in the horribleness of responsibility her actions would effect more than just herself, every hit she made on her captor would be super-imposed on Soi a thousand times more hatefully. It was how Aizen was playing this game. Luppi pushed himself from the wall and waved a finger for her to follow him. "Come on Kitten-chan it's not far."

She bore her teeth like a caged beast, it would do no good.

Halibel turned in the opposite direction, Yoruichi glared, "Where are you going bitch?"

The scarf covering the woman's mouth muffled speech and his emotion all she needed to do was being a slender digit in front of her lips, the universal sign to shut the hell up. "I'm just going to pay your bee a visit." The words were quiet through the scarves heavy cloth, "If you hurt her I'll turn you inside out."

The threat was ignore and the lion left the cat behind her, after all why bother with such a domesticated beast when you are the king?

Halibel was the king in this situation and the calm surrounding her like a lions roar told Yoruichi that she had no choice, all threats were reality and would not be carried out until she disobeyed, so her presence close to Soi Fong was not yet something to worry about, it would only be when Yoruichi made it that way.

Luppi picked up the reigns in his tentacle arms, "Just be quiet and obey and nothing will happen to her, Kitten." His smile was like candy and it made her sick.

Kuukaku was sitting in the waiting room, she had stayed through the night to watch the procession of healing but had been left frustratingly out of the loop because of her lack of familial ties. She hadn't even seen Yoruichi for hours and the sleep she'd managed was minimal and dozing. Now she was outside and smoking because the hussy receptionist had been replaced by some hard ass and she'd been forced to leave the waiting room while she was inhaling toxins. It hadn't made her happy.

The argument that had previously kept Yoruichi distanced from her had faded to the dour black background of this particular night and quite frankly she wanted nothing more than to collapse on her friends shoulder or perhaps vice versa. It was funny how mass tragedy made one happy to be alive.

Light flooded the area in front of the door, for brief moments shadows appeared walking passed the waiting room door in the flickering light of morning that now appeared over the skyscraper horizon. Now two steady shadows appeared. There is a point in the course of knowing someone for a long time when you can identify them by their shadow. The form of themselves that is most unlike themselves to a close friend is boundlessly familiar and there was not doubt that it was Yoruichi.

The other shadow was shorter and for second Kuukaku dreamed it to be Soi, miraculously healed and ready to be brought home, just in time for the New Year's party she still had to throw. And then she knew it wasn't, it was a male, maybe, short and cocky that moved like an octopus with a lollipop in each hand. As the pair walked past every fiber of Kukkaku's body was unsettled.

Yoruichi's eyes scanned the side of the building as they had just recently scanned the waiting room. Desperately searching for someone to communicate the disparity of her situation.

Just as she'd hoped Kuukaku was there, cigarette about to skydive from between lips loose with surprise, she looked perturbed, understanding that this was not the way it was supposed to be.

Luppi began talking, blabbing like an idiot, "Don't worry Halibel isn't gonna hurt your sweetheart Kitten, just test her loyalty, oh you know, some people like to do silly stuff like that, maybe it was an order from Aizen who knows."

The boy was a fully certified idiot and Kuukaku didn't need all of the things he said to know what she had to do. Do what she always did, react violently. This course of action was interrupted by a subtle nod of the Shihoin's head. Now she was confused, she'd figured everything else out by intuition but the second she had to go against the way she was wired she couldn't understand what was going on. Gold eyes traced back to the light of the doorway, relaying the single message, 'Make sure Soi is okay.'

That was what mattered right now.

* * *

Gin sat eating. It had been a while since he'd eaten something that wasn't out of a greasy bag. In a gang of men no one had bothered to cook for a group, it was always some sort of take out or pizza, it was a miracle he hadn't starved after becoming ill of that shirt. This was good though, it was the simplest of meals, some rice and mushrooms. In most circles considered less than an appetizer and he thought it was delicious. Matsumoto had made it for him before promptly passing out on the couch. He didn't blame her, it was on his account that she'd been up all night.

He was no longer with Aizen and yet, he was the same, a bomb hadn't gone off in his chest and he was still alive which was somewhat boring in it's sameness. He felt as if she should not have survived their beating. It would have befit him to die in the dirtiest room in this city, in the filth he had created. Die alone from the beating of a sadistic man he had decided to trust.

He hoped Kira was okay.

His phone went off.

Gin looked at it for a moment, the thing was encrusted with dirt from where it had been smashed into the ground by Grimmjow. All of his belongings had been destroyed but the phone still rang. It's cries for attention were strangled and pathetic but he could not deny the curiosity of whose call was important enough to make the damn thing work.

The speaker whined but he held it to where he could hear. A voice broke everlasting static, "Hello?"

The voice spoke to him and he recognized it but did not know why it was there, the voice of Kisuke Urahara flowing from the broken pieces of his past life.


	29. we turn tides like the pacific

Wow, no way right? It'll be done soon.

* * *

Kuukaku meant to carry out the orders post haste and would have followed through on this intent successfully had it not been for a single obstacle.

Unohana in all her righteous glory, specifically, her arm slung across Kuukaku's path at a critical moment between sprinted steps allowing for a perfect halt of forward motion. A clothes-line, laid out by Mother Theresea herself Kuukaku sputtered disbelievingly at the ceiling. She moaned and coughed, things feeling detached deep in her abdominal cavity, she expressed all sentiments though vulgarities.

"Son of a bitch, who the fuck would do something like that?"

"Swear less please."

She smiled gently and made to assist the fallen woman to her feet only to have her efforts quashed by Kuukaku's pride. Recovering her breath she clambered to her feet.

"Shit, why'd you feel the need to break my fuckin' ribs?"

"I know the result of your temper and I'm sure whatever you were running to do was less than friendly."

"Fuck friendly."

"I won't have more people admitted to this hospital because of the stunts you and your friends are pulling."

Her voice was steady velvet, calm and soft and informative, Kuukaku didn't believe her, "Stunts? You think we all want to do this? You think we want all of our friends admitted to your fucking hospital. Bullshit."

Unohana did not react, no patronizing healers smile, no words of calming wisdom, though she looked neither shocked nor angry the emptiness informed Kuukaku that she had been successful in inciting whatever vicious epiphany she had wished to inspire.

"Now, I'm going to check on Soi, Yoruichi wanted me too, all of the bad shit didn't end last night and if you wanna keep me from checkin' I swear to god you'll be putting stitches in yourself."

Kuukaku was incapable of feeling guilt when all she'd done was achieve the reaction, or lack thereof, they she had initially wanted, she was not the kind to pat backs and take back words; she wouldn't say a thing she didn't mean.

Her march took her past Unohana and to the door, for a second she grasped the handle, ensuring that her breath had returned in sufficiency for her to win any fight she might have to, in a sudden slurry she pushed the handle down and shoved the door inwards to find…

Nothing.

Soi Fong rested peacefully in the hospital bed; color in her cheeks, perhaps even looking better than before. Despite the reassurance in Soi's health she felt unsettled by the ghost of whatever had been, a presence, sticky and unwelcome seemed to have kept itself in the room's corner, in the air molecules, she inhaled it and grimaced. Whatever had worried Yoruichi had been here and now it was gone, one more thing to hurt them out in the wild of Tokyo . She smashed a fist into the metal doorframe.

* * *

"So you're the broad that killed Yami huh? Nice tits." Yoruichi did her best to ignore the man she was forced to share the back seat of the increasingly compact car with, his hair was slicked back and dyed an otherworldly shade of sea foam, as if his blue dye-job had faded badly, his face looked most fitting with an exaggerated sneer but she could see the muscles that lined him, that gave him the look of a crouching jaguar. Halibel had eventually returned from her detour, lion's eyes filled with practiced ill-intent. Luppi was slurping something in the passenger's seat.

"Jeeze, don't even wanna talk huh? Right, Aizen said you were gay 'er somethin'"

For the first time she looked away from the window and at him, when had the last time been that her sexuality had been conveyed in such a way?

"Yeah, somethin'"

Grimmjow didn't seem surprised at her abrupt willingness for conversation.

"Yeah? Hey, whatever gets you off?" His voice had a savage gravel in it, "Bad luck for ol' Urahara huh?" He seemed to be speaking more to his companions or to nobody at all.

"Has to run around with a smokin' chick like you 'n doesn't even get anythin' fer it. Didn't he take the fall for that Yami shit?" He whistled, impressed, mocking, now looking her in the eye, "That's commitment."

Yoruichi blinked slowly, there was the heat of anger beginning like a rash from the back of her neck but along with it was the realization that such a perspective had never occurred to her. She paled, entrapped, held from violence or response by the company of the enemy.

Halibel eyed her in the mirror.

"Don't worry the goddess with the feelings of mere mortals, her way seems to be working out pretty good, she even managed to kill a man."

Grimmjow looked between them not seeming to comprehend the threat, the potent taunt.

"Either way I see it, we're lucky the bastard's got such a stiffy for you. Means leverage."

In a brilliant imagining Yoruichi saw her self braced against the door, her foot smashing in the teeth on his smug face, breaking the golden crown of Halibel's head, letting the car crash into something, anything, they were only going thirty, she could survive it.

* * *

By the time Urahara had reached the specified location the sun had stretched itself sleepily across the sky. Tokyo buzzed with the early signs of commercial and occupational, crosswalks began to fill and empty methodically to the tempo of the lights changing, now and then a horn blared, the man talking voices made up the constant thrum of a bass. Any hint of snow had been pushed to the dirty corners once again and Urahara, feeling very young in his jeans and white tee-shirt, sat on a park swing. For some reason meeting at a school, by some distinction holy ground for grown men, made the negotiations less threatening. Now and then he would gently nudge the moist wood chips with the tip of his shoe, propelling himself backwards, his hands jutting out of his pockets at right angles as he tried to maintain balance without clutching the chains that held him up. Without his hat he looked amazingly youthful, the shadows normally cast around his eyes were less defined, the years of his life were laid out in the sun.

Gin arrived in a suit, the legs pressed, his usable hand was much more sophisticatedly balanced in a deep pocket, the other in a sling, his posture was slack and unguarded.

"Lookin' sharp, guess I underdressed."

"This was jus' the only piece of clothes a'mine that Rangiku had. There was a good reason I left it."

His smile being permanent, Urahara couldn't discern his disposition, whoever had gotten to him had done so with force, a bandage above his eye prompted swelling down the entire left side of his face, the skin around his lips was bulged outwards as if his gums were broken and bursting and bruises were barely covered by his pressed white collar.

"She took good care of you huh?"

He was quiet, his smile seeming out of place.

"I guess we should talk about everything."

"'Spose we should."

The subtleties weren't getting them anywhere.

"I want to deal with Aizen."

"'N he want to deal with you."

"Anything you can give me to start things off?"

"Things have already started." His voice was almost a sing-song.

"Anything, Gin."

The man thought for a moment before responding.

"Since his infiltration messed up he won't mess around, somthin' more direct. Get yer choke points. I might jus' suggest you give up the stuff from the Hogyoku project all together, least then non of yer friends will get hurt."

"But everyone else involved will."

Gin was quiet, he moved slowly, proving he intended no harm, he at himself down on the swing next to Kisuke and wrapped his good hand around the chain, for a few seconds he occupied himself with throwing his weight back and forth to gain a bit of momentum.

"Ya'know back then I did all that too, and I thought that the only way to do it was to shut up you guys that investigated. Not like there was any other way ta' get of' the hook fer good with what we did. Now I'm jus' the coward that flipped first,"

Urahara indicated the sling with a hitch of his chin, "Looks like you had good reason."

"His mistake not killin' me."

Gin had all but established a full swinging motion, the metal bones of the set rocked, unused to the weight of a grown man.

"The key to getting' him is disillusionment, he's got all those people like there's some spell on 'em. It's his charisma, its bad poison, and there all real convinced a' themselves. You just have to make 'em do what I did."

Not revealing the secret he hopped off of the swing at the peak of its forward arch, landing as if he'd never jumped at all. Urahara kept quietly intent, he looked at Gin's back, the silver hair fell down onto the back of his suits collar, he was smiling up to the sky.

"Make 'em see that its all bullshit. Aizen tell 'em he wants to get 'em to control the city, that they can use the Hogyoku projects findings to blackmail high-ups in the police force and get some backing, that's what he's got 'em thinking when all he wants to do is save his own ass. That's what it all is, so what ya' gotta do it-"

"Divide and conquer."


End file.
